The Misadventures : Over the Hills and Far Away
by The Girl With The Serpent Skin
Summary: Sam&Dean head south to investigate a serial killer.They meet a girl that catches Dean's eye,but she's more interested in the deaths going on & Sam.Turns out the victims aren't human,and maybe they aren't the only ones
1. Chapter 1

The slick black '67 Impala looked out of place as it pulled into the parking lot of a rundown motel, one that possibly charged by the hour. Never the less, Dean felt the need to stay there for the night, mostly because of what he saw parked outside one of the rooms. It was beautiful. A 'black '69 Trans Am with, as far as he could tell, the original decal. It was gleaming in the sunlight with the hood popped. Almost as intriguing as the car was what he saw sticking out from under the hood. Scanning from top to bottom he saw the bare, tanned back of a girl, possibly a woman?, leading into very short denim shorts filled with slender toned legs ending in rainbow flip flops. As he parked his baby and got out of the car with his brother, Sam, she stood up and wiped the sweat of her brow. Now he could tell she was wearing a swimsuit top, and an unusual amount of jewelry, holding an oily rag and a wrench.

"You having some car troubles? Need a hand?" Dean asked, attempting to be polite, as they approached her.

She wiped the oil off her hands and shut the hood of her car. She gave them both a once over and put the wrench back in her toolbox on the ground.

"Have you seen my car? She's running perfectly now, but thanks anyway," she said and started getting her things together to put away.

"Yeah she sure is a beaut, where'd you find her?" Dean was way too intrigued to just walk away from this one.

"Find her? Please, this baby's been in the family since she was made. My mom bought her brand new," she paused to look them both over again before sticking out her slightly greasy hand, "I'm ah… You can call me Rhiann, nice to meet you… I think."

Dean shook her hand first. "I'm Dean, this is my brother Sam. We just got in town, know of any good eats around here?"

She shook Dean's hand then Sam's, "Yeah there's a great little hole in the wall bar and grill up the road a ways. It's mostly a bar really, but their cheeseburgers are freakin' to DIE for. If you guys want to wait around a bit, I'll show you up there in a little while."

"Sounds great, we'll go get our room while we wait," Sam responded before Dean could.

"Yeah, let me get cleaned up. I'm in room 713, call me when you get yours so I know how to get a hold of you, yeah?" She picked up her toolbox and put it on the floor of the backseat of her car. When she came back around to the side the brothers were waiting on she had a hula-hoop on her shoulder and a bottle of water in her hand.

"Or if you want I could just give you my cell number?" Dean threw the suggestion out trying to be coy, but judging by the look on her face, she was seeing straight through him.

"Ah sure, hold on," she said as she dug her cell phone out of her pocket. She exchanged numbers with both of them and headed back to her room for a nice hot shower.

Sam and Dean got their room and dropped all their bags in it.

"You know Dean, we're here on a case, we don't really have time to be… fraternizing with the locals," Sam said, not really sounding too annoyed, but still…

"Nonsense Sammy, she's not a local, she's in a motel!"

"Still, all the same Dean, there are five dead already…"

"So, what we don't have time to eat? We've been on the road for seven hours, don't tell me you're not hungry," Dean retorted, taking off his t-shirt to slide on one that was a bit tighter.

"No, I mean, I guess this is fine. Just… don't get too distracted alright?" Sam on the other hand wasn't really trying to impress anyone today, so he stayed in the clothes he was wearing, but he did spray just a little cologne when Dean wasn't looking.

"No worries Sammy, I'll make quick work of this one. Who knows? Maybe she knows something. Girl with a car like that has to know something…" Dean's mind began to wander as he remembered Rhiann and her car. "Now that I think about it, what kind of a name is Rhiann for a girl?"

Sam shrugged, "I don't know, maybe it's short for something. Seriously Dean, there are five dead; they've all been in parks. No one has been able to find any of them in any kind of database; no dental records, no birth certificates, no fingerprint matches, nothing. It's like these people didn't exist before they were killed.."

"Well did you call the morgue? Find out if there was anything off about their autopsies?"

Sam shut his laptop as he pulled out his cell phone. "No, not yet, I just found the number, hold on." He plopped down on his bed and dialed the morgue. He lied and said he was with the FBI, but didn't manage to get much information out of the girl; apparently she thought it best if they came and took a look for themselves.

Dean's phone rang and he nearly jumped to answer it.

"Hello? Oh hey Rhiann, yeah we're in 607, Oh, yeah Sam's on the phone, guess that's why he didn't answer. You ready? Yeah, no we can just take my ca- Oh yeah I understand wanting to drive something like that. Yeah we'll just follow you." And with that he hung up.

A few seconds later Sam hung up too, "Yeah I think we should go down and take a look for ourselves in the morning. The girl there didn't seem to know what the hell she was dealing with; didn't sound like she cared either."

"Sounds like a plan Sammy, but in the mean time, I'm famished. You ready to go?" Dean threw his leather jacket over his shoulder; it was nice and warm now but by the time he planned on getting back in it would be late and probably cold.

"Yeah I'm ready," Sam responded as he loaded up his pockets with his phone wallet, well wallets, and various "badges".

"And no funny business Sammy, you know she called you first?"

Sam checked his phone; sure enough he had missed a call while on the other line with the morgue. "Huh, go figure, maybe this time the girl likes me more than you." Sam was almost inclined to stick his tongue out, but decided not to, this wasn't going to turn into some who-gets-the-girl contest.

"Yeah well, you're not very stiff competition Sammy, I'll turn her around," Dean retorted with a chuckle.

"Go for it dude, I've got bigger things to worry about," Sam sighed as they walked out of their motel room and shut the door.

They met Rhiann in the parking lot between their cars, giving Sam the feeling of being dragged to one of those classic car shows that his father and brother loved so much. She mentioned that the bar they were headed for, a Podunk little place called Champs, had had apple pie the other night and she hoped tonight was pumpkin, and Dean hopped in his Impala so fast it damn near made her head spin. So she slid into her driver's seat and led them about 5 miles down the road to Champs.

Rhiann licked the chilli cheese from her fries off her fingers as Dean ordered a slice of pie (blueberry) and Sam ordered a beer.

"So was that really a hula-hoop in the backseat of your car?" Dean asked as he swilled down the last of his beer, wishing he had ordered another one too.

"Mm, yup, it's good for the soul. Plus if anyone gets too close they get smacked in the face with it, and believe me it hurts," she said as she shoveled her last 4 fries in her mouth.

Sam sputtered slightly, "In the face?"

"Hell yeah, I don't do that little kid just around the waist crap,"

Their waitress came back with Sam's beer and Dean's pie; Dean asked her for another beer and Rhiann ordered a jack and coke, "And make it stiff sweetheart."

"Well you're going to have to show me that some time," Dean grinned slyly and attacked his pie.

"Yeah, we'll see, I don't plan on being in town much longer, least I hope not."

"We never stay in one spot much ourselves either," said Sam with a bit of a sigh to his voice as he swilled his beer.

"I wouldn't either with an Impy like that. So what are you guys, like salesmen or are you just a gay couple on the run pretending to be brothers?" she asked, her eyes almost fixed on Sam.

Dean laughed, "Yes that's it, and we've run away from our strict Christian parents in an attempt to find a town that will accept us and let us marry and have 2.5 children," he jokingly put his arm around Sam.

"Aw, well that's sweet. I think you'd be all right in what, Connecticut or Massachusetts or one of those dinky Eastern states. California is way too overpopulated with vegetarians and uppity douche bags."

"Damn vegetarians," Dean muttered as he finished off his pie.

"So what about you Rhiann? What brings you all the way down here to South Carolina?" Sam asked as the waitress brought over more drinks.

"Actually it's not really all the way down here, it's all the way up here, I'm from Louisiana. Couldn't you tell?"

"Well I had a hunch but I couldn't pin down a state..." Sam trailed off, feeling like she was dodging the real question. Something felt not quite normal about this girl to him; she seemed to wander without a purpose, just like them…

"So does that mean you do voodoo?" Dean asked, Sam wondered if he was joking or not.

"Hah! No, that's not the kind of magick I work," she grinned and winked at the boys as she downed the rest of her drink.

Dean looked intrigued, she was a coy one, "And what kind of magick do you work?"

"Oh Dean, Dean, it's one of those things you just have to be there to get, and I don't think you'll ever get to see it," she sighed and shook her head. Sam wondered if Dean realized he had essentially just gotten rejected. "Anyway boys, my drink is gone, my belly is full, I'm ready to head back and get some sleep, what about you?"

"Well I think I'm ready to head back," Dean snickered.

"Yeah, I've got some stuff I wanted to look up tonight anyway," said Sam.

"Anything I can help with? I've got a lot of random information up here," Rhiann tapped her temple as she said this.

"As a matter of fact yes, it was hula-hooping tricks, I was hoping to learn, maybe you could show me," Sam said, an innocent smile playing on his face.

"Oh of course, anytime Sammy," she scooped up her coat and dropped $15 on the table for a tip.

After they returned to the motel they said their goodbyes to each other for the night.

"Well if y'all are still in town tomorrow and you get bored, you can try to hit me up if you want, I might be free," Rhiann offered as she dug through her backseat.

"Yeah, I might take you up on that. Well goodnight, it was nice meeting you," Dean said as he headed back for his room.

"Yeah, for a random girl we met in the parking lot, I'd say you're pretty alright," Sam joked and headed for the vending machines.

When Sam started wandering back to his room, delighted with his Dr. Pepper, he noticed Rhiann sitting on the sidewalk, smoking.

"Hey, still out here?"

"Yeah, I can't smoke…anything… in the rooms, so I'm stuck out here," she drew her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. "I know it's not really that cold out but, damn, I just hate the cold weather. I wish it was 8o all the time," she said and took another drag off her cigarette. Was it a cigarette? Sam wasn't so sure.

"Yeah that's understandable, being from the Deep South and all," Sam chuckled a bit. "So can I ask you something?"

"Sure, good luck getting an answer though," she took another drag and held it out to Sam.

"No thanks, I don't smoke… So is Rhiann short for something?"

She nodded and inhaled another drag off what Sam was now sure was a joint. "Yeah it's short for Rhiannon. My ma was big on Celtic stuff, ya know?"

"Yeah actually I do know. Wasn't she like the goddess of the hunt? Like the maiden in their trinity?"

Her eyes popped a bit "Yeah, maiden, matron, and crone. How do you know all that?"

"Heh, let's just say that…ah… lore is fascination of mine. I know a little about a lot of things."

"I know a lot about very little things," she smirked, took one last drag off her joint and flicked the butt, or roach of it as Sam thought it was called, across the parking lot. "So you're brother, he's quite a character."

"Yeah tell me about it. He thinks he's quite the charmer."

"Oh I'm sure he is a charmer, but charmers really aren't my type. I'm not the sort of girl that enjoys a shag and dash. Well, it was nice talking to you, but I'm drained and I have to get up early. Goodnight Sammy,"

"Did you just call me Sammy?"

"Er, yeah guess I did. Sorry?"

Sam paused for a moment when he realized it didn't really bother him like it usually did when anyone but Dean called him that. "It's okay, I'm just not used to it. Hope I see you around Rhiannon."

And with that she shut her door and was fully ready for a very long night of rest. After all she had to go to the gun store in the morning for more ammo before she went to the park.


	2. Chapter 2

Rhiannon sighed, exasperated, as she double-checked the clip in her gun to make sure she had reloaded it. She started to wonder why she had bothered to come to the park in the daylight, and why she had brought a gun. Now that she had found the 6th body she knew the gun was absolutely pointless, it wouldn't do any good against what she was fighting. She wished the UV bullets she had seen in some sci-fi/fantasy movie were real.

"Maybe they are real…" she spaced out lost in thought, standing amongst the trees near the newest body, phone out, about to call the police. "Should have brought a sword…" She snapped out of her daze when she started hearing someone talking. It was 6:30 in the morning, if anyone was in the park they should be jogging, so whom was she hearing?

She holstered her gun under her jacket and slid farther back into the woods. When she saw 2 figures walking towards the fountain, the body laying next to it, she crouched down in the woods and started backing away. This was probably not the best time to get spotted, what if they thought she did it? If the roles were reversed, she'd definitely think they had done it.

"It's just like all the other ones Dean, bone dry. It's got to be vampires, right?" Sam was kneeling down looking over the body.

"But why is it so… clean? I mean vampires don't usually leave their victims in one nice piece," Dean nudged the head of the poor girl with his toe so he could see both sides of her neck, not that it really mattered, the only wounds were small burn marks.

"Maybe these ones are… civilized? I don't know. Maybe it's like that shifter, just pretending to be a vampire?"

"This just doesn't make any sense Sam,"

"Hold up, look at this," Sam turned her left arm over and looked in the crook of her arm, "Is that…"

"Seriously? That looks like a needle mark…" Dean crouched down next to Sam to get a closer look

"So, someone managed to get a needle in this girl's arm and drain her until she was bone dry? I mean, it looks like they got every last drop. That would take… hours…"

"And it doesn't look like she was restrained either, she just laid there and let them?" Dean looked down at her ankles and wrists but didn't see any bruising.

"I'm not sure about that. It looks like she was burned a little, and check these out," Sam was picking up thin chains that were laid over her ankles and wrists. They were just plain necklaces.

Dean took one from Sam and held it up in the light, inspecting the clasp. "Well, I'll be damned, Sammy these are just plain old gold chains. This girl isn't human, right? I mean she can't be."

"Right, so, morgue?"

"Yep."

Once the brothers had gotten back in their car and driven off Rhiannon slunk out of the woods. She pulled black gloves out of her pocket and slid them both on, they had devil's traps stitched in white in the palms and the fingers were removable, but she kept them on. She looked over the marks burned into the dead girl's skin on her wrists and ankles before picking up the one left on her neck. Rhiannon winced at the tearing sound when she pulled the chain off the corpse. She took a little baggie out of her jacket pocket and dropped the necklace in, sealed the baggie up and stuck it back in her pocket.

She inspected the needle mark in the poor girl's inner arm. Yeah, they definitely drew blood there, but Sam was right, that would take hours. She checked the other arm and found another mark, there was one on her chest, and she found one on each foot. Normally she would find it odd that the girl was bare foot, but not this time. Besides, the needle marks she also had some odd burns. They were small, and splattered. It looked almost like someone had splashed hot grease on her, but not very much. There were just a few marks on her face, chest, and upper arms. She finally took a good look at the girl's clothes. They were made out of some, nearly sheer, fabric she had never seen before. Her skirt was a simple green wrap and her shirt was a basic white tunic with green and gold stitching. It looked like some kind of Celtic design, but apparently, whatever it was, was not for protection.

"So you had no idea you were walking into a trap…" she sighed and stroked the girl's face, "Don't worry, I'll figure out who set it, and I'll kill them, I swear."

She wandered to the edge of the woods and tugged a seed off the nearest plant she could find, burying it next to the body of the dead inhuman girl.

"Chlorophyll? What the hell does that even mean Sam?" Dean threw his duffel bag on the bed as he walked back into the motel room, Sam in tow. He had noticed there was no Trans Am in the parking lot.

"It's something that's in plants, it converts-"  
"Dude, I know what it _is_, but the fact that it's been in all of the victim's cells, what does that mean? Are they some kind of freakin' plant people?" Dean pulled out the phone book and flipped through the restaurants/takeout section. A little trip to the morgue never killed his appetite. He cocked his head; someone had just pulled into the parking lot blasting Led Zeppelin.

"Honestly? I don't know Dean; I'm going to call up some of Dad's contacts and look around on the web. Even Bobby didn't have a clue what it means; nobody seems to know what kind of creature is hurt by gold. Dad never used gold on one of his hunts before?" Sam slid his laptop out of his case and booted it up.

"No, not that I ever knew about. And even if he did, we're not hunting the dead guys, not yet anyway, we're working on what's hunting them. Screw this, I'm going to go get some-"

There was a light rap on the door. Dean tossed the phone book aside and peered out the peephole. He grinned and slid the chain off the door and unlocked the dead bolt.

"Hey Rhiann, still in town?" He leaned against the door in what he hoped was a casual manner. Since when could a girl get Dean all worked up?

"Ah, yeah, things got a little complicated. Look, the maid hasn't come by and I don't have anymore clean towels and I could really use a shower,"

"Yeah, I would say so," said Sam, who had made his way next to Dean. He noticed that she had leaves stuck in her hair and mud on her hands, even her clothes were muddy.

"Yeah thanks Agent Smith," her eyes scanned them both over, they were wearing rather nice all black suits. She would never admit they looked good, so she went with a lame Matrix reference. "So do you boys have an extra towel, or what?"

"Probably, hold on," Sam sauntered back in to the bathroom.

"So… I don't suppose you're hungry? I was just about to go get some grub if you want to come,"

"Ah, I don't know maybe after I-"

"Found one, here," Sam handed her a fluffy white towel. "I'm going to go get a Coke, you want anything Dean?"

"Nah, thanks," Dean waited in the open doorway as Sam left for the vending machine. "So, dinner? I was in the mood for pizza."

"Maybe. Thanks for the towel. I'm going to go get all this dirt off me. I'll see you Dean," And with that she turned around and walked away.

As she was rounding the corner to the hallway her room was in, she ran into Sam, literally. He damn near knocked her on her ass; he probably would have if he hadn't caught her at the last second.

"Oh, Rhiann, I'm so sorry, I wasn't paying attention," he said as he righted her, making sure she had her balance.

"Oh no, it's ok. I came running around the corner… I… ah, it's fine, I'm fine,"

'_Oh great, awkward silence,'_ Rhiannon thought as they both just stood there, eyes averted. Sam shoved his hands in his back pockets and cleared his throat. Rhiannon clutched the towel against her chest.  
"So ah, you going out for pizza later?" Rhiannon inquired.

"Er what?" Sam's eyes snapped back to her when she spoke.

"Dean, he said he was going to get some pizza later. I was thinking about going too. Are you?"

"Oh yeah, probably. Someone is going to have to keep him in line," Sam looked down at his feet. Why were they both so freaking nervous?

"Cool, well I uh, I'll see you later then?" she picked a piece of lint of the towel, trying very hard not to stare at Sam. She had a habit of staring at people to the point of creeping them out, her head got lost in the clouds frequently.

"Yeah, for sure," Sam walked off, heading after the can of soda that had rolled away when he ran into Rhiannon.

When she returned to her room she slammed and locked the door behind her, leaning up against it for support until the slid down to the floor to sit. Her heart was racing faster than her mind. '_Did I really just get all flustered because of Sam? He's a friggin' WINCHESTER!'_

"Oh for Chrissake Rhiann, get a hold of yourself. Just because they are both way cuter than you thought is no reason to forget…" she sighed and stood up. She went to the bathroom and turned on the shower. Waiting for the water to get hot she cracked open two mini bottles of Jack Daniel's from the mini bar.

"Why is everything in motels mini?"

'_Except Sam.' _

"Oh for the love of God!" she felt utterly exasperated. After she downed both bottles of Jack she started tossing her clothes off, strewing them about the room. There was no way she was going to let herself fall for a Winchester. No, every hunter had heard about them and their father. Falling for a Winchester was practically a death sentence, and she had no interest in dying yet. Besides, that wasn't the only reason being around them might get her killed.

She got in the shower and scrubbed and scrubbed and scrubbed, and tried not to think about Sam. Which only made her think about Dean. Which made her think about getting killed. Today was a circular kind of day. And how in the hell was she going to catch whoever was killing people in the park? Whoever was doing it knew what they were dealing with, they came prepared: gold, whatever the hell it took to draw blood, and she was willing to bet they had lemon juice too based on the girl's burns.

And it sure as hell seemed like they were tracking their victims, waiting in ambush for them the instant they appeared. But how? Was there a witch involved? Were they scrying? But even that would only tell them where their victims were, not where they would be. It couldn't be an Oracle; she'd never in her life heard of an Oracle with any ill intent.

Her head was starting to throb so she rinsed out the conditioner in her hair and stepped out of the shower, grateful for the fluffy white towel the Winchester boys had given her.

She dressed herself in a knee length flowing white skirt and a black tank top with a small white vine and flower pattern on the bottom of it. She slid her feet into her rainbow flip flops and stood there, unsure of where she was going to go.

She decided, firmly (she told herself), that she was **not** ever going **anywhere** with the Winchester boys again. It was an awful, not to mention suicidal, idea. But, there was practically no chance of her catching these… drainers by herself. Frustrated, she growled, snatched up a CD case and her hula-hoop and went outside. Hula hooping always helped her clear her mind and manage her thoughts. She did her best thinking with some Zeppelin blaring while she spun around inside the green, blue, and silver circle.

She headed out to the parking lot and took out the Physical Graffiti CD that was in the player in Trans Am and put in the first disc of Mothership. She started spinning and tossing the hoop in the air.

This, of course, turned out to be completely counterproductive. Nothing drew out a Dean like some Led Zeppelin.

"Dude, seriously, it's been playing for like 20 minutes. I'm going out there," Dean was sitting on his bed, leg twitching, staring at the door.

"It's just someone listening to music," Sam didn't even look up from his computer screen.

Ramble On filtered in through the open window.

"Oh that's it," Dean hopped up and was out the door in a flash. He scoped the parking lot out until he saw her. Rhiannon was all the way at the other end of the lot. Her Trans Am was parked more than five spaces away from anyone else and she was in the grass… hula hooping. Man this girl was something else. Dean walked over to her slowly.

"Hey, havin' a good time out here?" he asked, not getting within in 10 feet over.

She jumped and turned to Dean, looking surprised, "What? Oh hi! Hold on," she put her hoop down and went to her car. She leaned in through the open window, which Dean thoroughly enjoyed, and turned her music down.

"I asked if you were having a good time," Dean shoved his hands in the pockets of his faded, torn jeans.

"Oh yeah, I just uh…needed to clear my head a little bit," she seemed a little out of breath.

"So you want to come out tonight or what?" Dean didn't feel like beating around the bush anymore. She had made him wait; he hated waiting.

"I uh, well… I mean it's just that,"

Sam walked out of their motel room, "Alright dude, I'm officially starving let's go," he hollered from across the parking lot.

Dean turned back to Rhiann, "So are you coming or not? We're leaving now I guess."

Rhiannon felt her heart catch in her throat. She wanted to go, she was hungry, and she did love pizza. But the logical part of her, the predator part of her, the survival instinct told her not to go. Her heart raced. For once, she was at a loss for words.

Sam slid into the passenger seat of the Impala and Dean slowly began to back away from Rhiannon.

"If you're not hungry or whatever, it's cool," Dean tried to help her out, the look on his face made her think he was as confused as she was. Sam was in the Impala, looking at the floor and biting his lip. He looked nervous.

"No, I want to go! I just…" she stopped to think of a reason for her behaviour, "I'm sorry out of money until tomorrow is all," she lied.

"Ah, don't worry about it, but you're on a five drink limit," Dean grinned and headed for the car.

"Cheapskate," she mumbled. It felt like her feet were walking her to their car. She wasn't sure she had any control over her body at the moment. What was she doing, didn't she say she wasn't going with them anymore? She was only a few feet from the car door now. What was she doing? She had been staring at her feet but when she was within arm's reach of the handle, she looked up. Sam caught her eye and she felt stuck. Her breath hitched, her heart stopped, and she was fairly certain she couldn't move.

"Are you okay?" Sam leaned out of the window and started to reach for her.

She pulled away reflexively. "Yeah, just, um," she reached forward and brushed his cheek with her thumb, "You had an eyelash on your face."

"Oh, well do I get to make a wish?" Sam leaned out a little more.

"Ah no, sorry, I lost it already," she pretended to check her thumb for the nonexistent eyelash and quickly got into the back seat of the car.

"You're a strange one, Rhiann," Dean commented and started the car. He headed for Mama Cassie's, a place he had found in the phone book. He had called to make sure they had at least three different kinds of peppers and bacon, God, how he loved bacon on his pizza.

"And you're a strange two. At least I don't try to hide my strangeness," she stared out the windows, barely paying attention to what she was saying.

"Hey," Dean said in mock sternness, "Don't lump me in with him. I'm perfectly comfortable with my strangeness, it's part of my charm."

"I'm not strange! I'm the only normal one here," Sam protested.

"I think, technically, that makes you the strange one Sammy," Rhiannon chuckled.

"Dude, did she just call you Sammy?" Dean shot Sam a look, and then sent another one Rhiannon's way via rearview mirror.

"Ah, sorry, I forgot you hate that Sam. I had a cousin, we called her Sammy, it's a habit," she covered before Dean could get upset.

_'Oh Lord, what have I gotten myself into?'_ Every instinct she had was screaming for her to jump out the window of a moving car, a very fast moving car. Not only was she with the Winchester brothers AGAIN, but things were getting…sticky. There was no point in denying that something about Sam got to her. She definitely felt inclined to spend more time with him. Dean was obviously trying, at the very least, to get in her pants. God, they were dumb, especially for a pair of hunters, a practically legendary pair of hunters.

Not nearly soon enough, Dean parked his baby and they embarked on the all-important quest for pizza (with chicken, bacon, and jalapenos). Somehow, they managed to drop the awkwardness from the car. They swapped road trip stories, all of which were edited and vague, over mozzarella sticks. They made up lies about what brought them to town over pizza.

"So, I think," Rhiannon said as she slurped down the rest of her Jack and Coke, "that was drink number five… Does that mean it's time for shots?" After she said it, she realized how dangerously close to using "womanly wiles" that was.

Dean laughed and flagged down their waitress, "Three shots of Jack Daniel's sweetheart. Actually, make those double shots."

"Just two, I'm alright," Sam chimed in.

"Oh, come ON Sam, you need to unwind," Rhiannon giggled and leaned back in her side of the booth. She had to admit; she was feeling kind of tipsy. Her tolerance had been dwindling lately. She hadn't been drinking nearly as much since she'd been on the road.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sam almost sounded offended.

"I mean I just met you guys and I can tell you're stressed out all the time. You can relax sometimes you know. The world won't end if you take a night to yourself, have some Jack," she grinned at him for a second. Yeah, the womanly wiles were starting to leak out of her. Things like this were the reason she hated, and loved, Jack.

"I guess one shot won't hurt," Sam caved, and the waitress left to get their shots.

"Atta boy Sammy. I always tell him he needs to relax, maybe get some action, going to give himself a heart attack at this rate," Dean grinned as the waitress brought their shots. Dean and Rhiannon downed theirs quickly, Sam a little more hesitant.

"Hold on boys," Rhiannon's eyes were following someone across the room.

"What?" Sam's eyes locked on to the person she was looking at, "Her? What? Do you know her?"

"No, but I wish I did, don't you? God she's hot," Rhiannon slid out of the booth and walked right across the path of a small, even smaller than Rhiannon, Asian girl with an angelic face and a devilish body. She went to the jukebox and 'Ain't No Sunshine' started playing through out the restaurant.

"Man I wish I knew what they were saying," Dean said, watching Rhiannon approach the girl. His gaze was intent. Whatever she was saying, it was working.

"So… she likes girls?" Sam was still baffled as to what exactly was going on. Rhiannon was running her fingers up and down the girl's arm, saying something right into her ear.

"Yeah Sammy, get with the program. What is she saying? Jesus, she works fast! And I think she's a belly dancer too, she's full of surprises."

Rhiannon was already dancing with the girl. At first they were moving slowly, dancing rather close. But they started getting more into it, and once 'Honky Tonk Women' came on they were in full swing. They parted a little bit and danced their little hearts out.

"Well that explains why she's been brushing you off, Dean," Sam said, his eyes transfixed on the two of them.

A rather surly looking drunk guy, probably Dean's age, came up to the girl Rhiannon and been dancing with and grabbed her by the arm. Dean and Sam both jumped up immediately.

"Hey!" They hollered, simultaneously.

The little Asian girl looked from Rhiannon to Sam and Dean and back to the man that had grabbed her.

"Ah sorry Hitomi! Those are my friends," Rhiannon shouted over the music.

"And this is my boyfriend," Hitomi responded, yanking her arm out of his grip and stalking out the door with him.

Rhiannon returned to the table, looking glum, but did not sit down.

"Sam! Come dance with me! I love this song," she gave him her best puppy dog eyes, which were pretty damn good, even compared to his.

"I ah…I'm not much of a,"

"WAITRESS! Triple shots this time, could you please?" Rhiannon was getting tired of yelling over the music, but she didn't want to turn it off.

"Rhiann, I don't dance, I'm sorry," Sam avoided looking at her. Her cheeks were flushed, Sam didn't know if it was because she was drunk or upset or both. The waitress set their shots down on the table and Rhiannon picked hers up quickly.

"Fine, well here's to hopefully getting lucky with someone else then," she held her shot glass up and the boys clinked theirs against hers and they downed them at the same time.


	3. Chapter 3

"Oh good god," Rhiannon didn't even want to open her eyes yet. She was groggy and didn't remember too terribly much. There was the girl from the bar, more shots of Jack, she got in argument with Dean about…she wasn't sure, she thought it might have been about how to pick up chicks. More shots of Jack. Who paid for all those shots? She remembered, vaguely, explaining to them the difference between a lesbian and a… well whatever she was.

Then she started using her brain. She was warm, not uncomfortably so, but warmer than she should be under a blanket.

"Oh god…" It started to register with her that she wasn't entirely alone. She barely opened one eye and saw…

Darkness.

That was because her face was buried in someone's neck. Someone's hair was in her eyes and it wasn't her own. Someone's arm was under her neck and around her shoulders. Someone smelled very nice, with just a hint of Jack Daniel's, though she suspected that had permeated the room. Her hand was on someone's rippling abs.

"Oh god oh god what have I done?" she whispered and slowly started to pull away.

Someone grunted and rolled over, throwing their other arm around her too. Sam nuzzled up closer to her. Her brain whirred and clicked as she tried to remember **exactly** what had happened that night. She was excited to realize, that maybe Sam didn't have a shirt on, but he did still have pants, a belt, socks, and she hoped underwear. She was still fully clothed, minus her flip flops and earrings.

"Ok, so far so good," she started to ease down under the covers, it seemed the easiest way out. She slid all the way down, trying very hard not to grope Sam, to the end of the bed and then out of the covers and off the bed.

Sam started to stir. Dean, who was in the other bed, opened his eyes. Yep she had slept in their room last night.

"Oh god," she bolted for the bathroom. She was going to be sick. She thought it was because of the jalapeno bacon pizza and the Jack put together, but there was the possibility it was because of the situation she had gotten herself into.

Someone knocked on the bathroom door, _'Oh god,'_ she thought to herself. That was her phrase of the day.

"Are you ok? Do you need a towel or a glass of water or anything?" Dean sounded genuinely concerned.

"No…no… I'm… I'm fine. I think I'm going to take a shower… I feel dirty," she said, on her knees, hunched over the toilet.

"Ok, do you need a change of clothes?"

She padded herself down, she didn't have her room key, "Ah yeah, but not Sam's, he's like four times my size."

"Yeah, I've got some extra tight shirts, you can probably wear one of those. I'll rummage for some shorts or something…" Dean walked away from the door, his bare feet making soft padding noises on the carpet.

Rhiannon stayed hunched over for a few minutes until she heard Sam wake up, talking to Dean. She was glad she had stayed over the toilet for a while. She wiped her mouth and washed her face and cranked on the shower. She considered disappearing. She could just Poof! skip town and never see them again and avoid the sure awkwardness she would have to face if she just walked back out there after her shower.

She stayed in the shower as long as possible, which turned out to be about 50 minutes, then the hot water ran out. She hated cold water. If she just disappeared now, they'd freak, there were no windows in the bathroom, they'd know something was up with her. She shut off the icy water and snatched a towel off the shelf. She dried her hair and her body and used up the entire bottle of complimentary lotion.

"Friggin mini lotion!" she tried very hard not to scream and chucked the empty bottle across the bathroom. She used the mini mouthwash, which was only good for four rinses, and chucked that across the bathroom too. She looked around and realized they hadn't snuck in while she was in the shower to give her new clothes.

She cracked the bathroom door and peeked out, "Ah Dean?"

"He went to go get coffee, said he didn't want me driving his baby all hungover," Sam looked miserable. He had managed to change his clothes, adding a shirt to his ensemble. "I hope he gets donuts too…"

"Oh god donuts would be awesome," she groaned and stepped out of the bathroom, wrapped in a towel, forgetting herself momentarily. "Er, he said he was going to get me a change of clothes?"

Sam's cheeks were a vibrant red, his eyes fixated on the floor, "Oh, ah yeah um," He looked around and found a pile of clothes on the dresser. He snatched them up and handed them to her quickly. Unfortunately for him, he was so much bigger than her that he could still see most of her towel-encased body. She was so much smaller than him. He could probably just pick her up and toss her…

"Here you go," he mumbled.

"Thanks Sam," she grabbed them and darted back into the bathroom. She changed quickly into Dean's "extra tight" button down white shirt, which was still too big for her, so she left the bottommost buttons undone. She slid into his pair of black basketball shorts and had to pull the drawstring on them as tight as she could, they were still too big so she rolled them up until they came down to her knees. She hurried because she wanted to talk to Sam before Dean came back.

When she came back out he was sitting on the couch with the television on, though he clearly wasn't actually watching it. She felt awkward as all hell, unsure of what to do next. So she plopped down on the couch, pulling her feet up onto it and sat in the lotus position.

"Sam, what do you remember about last night?" she stared at her hands in her lap.

"Ah well, after that girl left we had more shots. We got dessert and hung around for another hour or so, we had more shots again. Once we got back here, you schooled us both in poker and Dean went to sleep pretty quick after that, so we kept playing,"

"So you remember everything?" she cut him off.

Sam nodded. "Pretty much yeah, you don't?"

"No, I don't normally drink that much,"

"Yeah you two had way more to drink than I did."

"Anything else?"

"Not really…" Sam trailed off and fixed his eyes on the floor.

"What do you mean not really Sam?"

Dean came back in the door, coffee in hand. They both leapt off the couch.

"Oh thank god," Rhiannon exclaimed, yanking one of the cups out of the carrier.

"No donuts?" Sam asked, taking one of the other cups and sat back down on the couch.

"Ah no, should I have gotten some?" Dean took a swig off the remaining cup.

"Would have been awesome, but don't worry about it," Sam said, picking up the remote and flipping to the news.

"No, now that you've said it, I want donuts too. What kind do you like Rhiann?" Dean picked his keys back up off the table.

"Chocolate, with nuts, and if you make a nut joke I'll punch you. I don't feel like it today."

Neither of the boys could help but giggle.

"Right, Rhiann wants nuts on hers, ok," Dean turned around and went right back out the door.

"Sam, what do you mean not," she stopped.

The news had just come back from commercial. There had been another death in the park. Though they didn't specify, Rhiann had a hunch it would be just like the rest. Drained off all blood, with some small burns, and not a clue as to who did it.

"Er, wow, that's creepy," Sam said. He actually sounded convincing, not that he was fooling Rhiannon.

"SAM!" she hollered. She was getting really sick of his evasiveness.

"Look, nothing happened. I told you to take my bed, and you did. But you got upset when I was going to sleep on the couch. You said I should sleep in my own bed, you wanted the couch… Look I don't really know but, long story short, we …ah," Sam was hesitant, staring absently at the mirror on the wall.

"Sam are you serious!" she was completely floored.

"We both slept in my bed, but I swear nothing happened! I didn't touch you! I'm not like that!" he looked absolutely desperate. Was he really trying to convince her that he didn't make a move?

"Oh, Sammy… Jesus, you don't have to worry so much. I know you would never do anything like that. You don't seem like the taking advantage of drunk chicks type," she wondered if she should tell him that he did sort of touch her. Did it really mean anything that she woke up snuggled up with him?

She decided no. He didn't want her, so it wasn't really relevant. Besides, it would just make him feel bad. It was better to let this one go, he didn't need to know. It would just cause problems, which was the last thing any of them needed. It was starting to seem more and more likely that she would have to work with Sam and Dean to catch this apparent serial killer, or was it killers? No idea.

"So… you're not mad?" Sam looked up at her, finally.

"No, are you?" she was terrified to look back at him but she did. And she got that frozen in time feeling again. Why was she absolutely entranced by him? Well aside from the puppy dog eyes and the incredible body and how sweet and caring he was and his utter innocence when it came to just about anything but hunting and pain. And oh the pain, the poor thing had suffered so much, he deserved to have someone…

_'Oh for the love of god Rhiann, stop it!'_ she shook her head.

"No, I'm not mad at you for letting me sleep in my bed… So we're ok?" Sam was giving her the puppy dog eyes without even realizing it.

"Of course we're ok Sam," she almost wanted to cry and she hated herself for it. She was being weak, falling to pieces over something that almost happened with a boy that almost liked her, a boy that she was lying to every second of every day. She snapped out of it when she heard a muscled engine returning to the parking lot.

"Please don't tell Dean," Sam whispered, begging.

"I won't as long as you won't,"

"He really likes you, you know,"

Rhiannon opened her mouth to respond but shut it the second the door opened.

"Who loves you baby?" Dean smiled that big self-satisfied smile he had as he kicked the door shut. He had the biggest box of donuts either of them had ever seen.

Sam and Rhiannon sprang off the couch almost instantaneously as Dean set his haul down on the table. The three of them downed the rest of their coffee, and of the two-dozen donuts they left only three survivors.

"So how are you feeling this morning Dean?" Rhiannon asked as she stuffed her last bite of chocolate nut covered donut into her mouth.

"Oh, I'm not as bad as you were. I got a headache and all, but I'm a big boy."

"What are you implying, that I'm not a big boy?" she eyeballed him, faking a pissed off look.

"Well I hope you're not a big boy," Dean chuckled.

"Don't feel bad Rhiann, you drank just as much as Dean and you probably weigh half as much, you did good," Sam grinned, white powder still on his lips.

Rhiann tried her hardest not to think about how badly she wanted to kiss the sugar sweetness off of his utterly delicious-looking lips. _'Damn it'_ she thought, _'this has got to stop.'_

"Don't patronize me Sam. It must have been all the cheese and ice cream I had when we were drinking," she mumbled, looking down at her stomach. She felt stuffed full of donuts.

"Whatever you say Rhiann," Sam gave her that same mocking grin before his demeanor visibly dropped. He turned to Dean, "Did you hear? People are getting killed in the parks around here. Apparently they found another body this morning."

"Ah, creepy," Dean said, sounding a little less convincing than Sam.

If she hadn't known better, she'd totally be falling for the act these boys were putting on. They were damn good liars when they really wanted to be.

"Alright boys, cut the crap. Have you figured out what's draining people in the parks? It sure isn't vampires, this is too close to surgical to be vampires. If we don't figure this shit out by tonight, someone else is probably going to die. I mean, it hasn't been happening every night, but I think with more and more of their own people dying, more and more of them are going to show up. But the thing is, I think they're getting ambushed the second they set foot here, so they don't stand a chance. So what are we going to do about it?" All the nervousness she had been harbouring faded into the background as she snapped into hunter mode. Right now, nothing mattered but stopping this. It was time to get down to business.


	4. Chapter 4

"Wait, What? Are you saying you know what the hell is going on here?" Dean leapt up from his seat; he looked completely flabbergasted.

"Woah, Rhiann, are you a…" Sam didn't even seem capable of finishing his sentence.

"Yes, I am a hunter. Yes, I know what's going on here. And what's more, I know who you are; you're the Winchesters, sans Daddy. Where's he at? You two seem to be having one hell of a time with this one by yourselves," Rhiann crossed her arms and leaned back in the chair.

"Rhiannon… he… he died…" Sam's voice quaked. He didn't know if he was mad or on the verge of tears.

"Oh… oh god… oh god,"_ Man, I've been saying that way too much today_, she thought to herself. "Sammy … Dean, I'm so sorry. I, I didn't realize," she put her hand on Sam's arm.

"Screw that, and don't call him Sammy" Dean sounded nearly irate, "You've been hunting the whole time and didn't bother to say anything?"

"Neither did you," she snapped back.

"Yeah well we didn't know who you were!" Dean actually wanted to hit a girl, mind you a very petite adorable girl that he would never actually hit, but he wanted to.

"Well… okay, yeah you have a point. Look, I was scared to tell you who I was…am. I'm sorry, but you're reputation precedes you… I didn't want to get… involved," she looked down, waves of shame rolling off of her.

"Look, enough, that's enough. We've got more important shit to worry about right now guys," Sam chimed in. He was always the smart one. "So you know what we're dealing with?"  
"Ah, well no. I thought I did. Like you, I assumed it was vampires,"

"How do you know what we thought?" Dean cut her off.

"Dude, I was hiding in the bushes when you were at the park the other morning. Anyway, like I was saying, I assumed it was vampires until I actually got here. Now that I've seen one of the bodies… I know it's not. Someone is draining them…ya know… medically. Probably to sell the blood to vampires."

"I don't get it, why would a vampire buy blood?" Sam looked absolutely puzzled, and for once Rhiannon didn't stop to think about how adorable he was when he was puzzled.

"Well because it's like their drug. Whoever's doing this is either tracking the victims or they are watching the park, I can't tell one way or the other. I also have no idea who would do a thing like this…" she sighed and fell back into her own thoughts. Who would do this? How could she catch them if she didn't know what she was dealing with?

"Hello? Earth to Rhiann, dude did you say her name was Rhiannon?" Dean was waving his hand in front of her face.

"Yeah, that's her full name," Sam uttered without really thinking about it. His brain was simultaneously miles away and bogged down in their room.

"RHIANNON!" Dean hollered.

"Oh Jesus Dean, quit yelling. What?" Her eyes slowly focused back in on the room around her.

"You said more of their kind? The victims? What the hell are they?" Dean finally sat back down in his chair, his eyes fixed on Rhiannon.

She looked back and forth between the two of them. They hadn't even figured that out yet? Wow, they really weren't as good as she thought. Or they were good at the physical hunting part and just really dumb.

"Are you shittin' me?" Now it was her turn to look flabbergasted.  
"No I'm not 'shitting' you. They're freakin' plant people that have a weakness to gold; they're nothing we've ever even heard of let alone dealt with," Dean snagged another donut and shoved it in his mouth.

Rhiannon looked back and forth between Sam and Dean. If they were really this slow then maybe…

"Are you serious?" Sam looked at her with an eyebrow cocked, "There's no way, they can't be…" Apparently it was starting to sink in for him.

"What? Will someone tell me WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?" Dean managed to get out around the donut.

"Seriously Dean… plant people? That was your theory?" Rhiannon tried very hard not to laugh at him. Now would not be a good time to laugh at Dean. But she did anyway, and was justly rewarded.

"Well what the HELL else was I supposed to think?" Dean sprayed bits of donut as he angrily tried not to look like a moron, which really wasn't working.

"Dude, Dean, they're faeries," Sam stated in a voice that was so matter-of-fact one might think he had known all along.

"WHAT! No way! There's no such thing as faeries! Sam are you stupid?"

Sam and Rhiannon sat absolutely silently with perfectly serious looks on their faces, staring at Dean. Waiting… waiting… waiting

"You're not kidding… Faeries are real?" Dean's jaw dropped, Rhiannon could have sworn it would hit the floor.

"Yes faeries are real, and we don't really have time for this, just trust me. Ok? Now we've got to figure out who's draining them," Rhiannon attempted to continue.

"Wait, why would anyone want to drain a faerie? Aren't they supposed to be like, I don't know, happy little nature freaks?" The gears grinding in Dean's brain could practically be heard as he tried to process the flood of new information.

"Yes they are 'happy little nature freaks' whose blood happens to be like vampire crack. Seriously, if a vamp so much as gets a whiff of faerie blood they go all bloodlust crazy, which is why faeries stay very very far away from them, which is probably why someone is draining them and selling their blood to vamps. So if we can't figure out who's doing the draining, we at least have to figure out how they're tracking these faeries. My guess is they are either tracking individual faeries, which is fairly difficult, or they are monitoring the parks around here. The part I don't understand is how they are getting them so quick, like on arrival quick. It's like these trackers know where the faeries are going to be… or they are just lying in wait every night…"

"I'd say they are monitoring the park since that's where all the killings have happened so far. And how do you know they are getting them… what, on arrival? What do you mean?" Sam asked, he was already booting up his laptop to research faeries.

"You didn't notice? All the bodies were found near water. Faeries can teleport through water, duh," Rhiannon sighed, she wished they would just get with the program. She felt like she was running out of time, she didn't need to waste even more of it explaining every last little detail to them.

"What do you mean?" Dean asked through donut-powdered lips.

"I mean a faerie in Japan could hop in a river and pop up out of the ocean on the beach here in like two seconds flat," Rhiannon stated, sounding a little frustrated, like explaining every day things to a child.

"Sweet," Dean grinned.

"Look, guys, we don't have this kind of time. If we don't know who's doing the draining, we need to figure out how. I took one of the chains they used to restrain the girl the other night…" Rhiannon patted herself down before she remembered she didn't have her room key. "Dean gimme your car keys," she held out her hand.

"Hell no!"  
"Dean! I think I left my jacket in there and it's got my room key in it," she hated feeling pressed for time.

"Oh, right," he reluctantly handed them over and she darted out of the room.

Rhiannon snatched up her jacket from the backseat of the Impala and locked it back up. She ran to her room and fumbled with the key for a minute before finally getting back in, she was relieved to find it was exactly how she had left it. She picked up the clothes she had been wearing the day before from the floor and snatched the plastic baggie out of her pocket. She debated getting dressed in her own clothes, but decided to do it later and ran back to the Winchesters' room.

Sam cleared his throat upon her re-entry.

"What?" she asked, confused. Sam simply pointed towards her waist and cleared his throat again, his eyes averted.

"Oh, Jesus. Thanks," she grinned her awkward embarrassed grin and blushed. Dean's shorts had sagged down, exposing her hipbones and a thin strip of her blue-starred panties. She tugged the shorts back up and sat down, dropping the bag in front of Sam.

"Here, take this, see if you can get into the local cop's crime lab. See if you can find prints or residue or fibers or anything that might help us figure out who's doing this," Rhiannon decided it was up to her to take control of the situation since the boys were basically clueless.

"And how am I supposed to do that?" Sam asked, shutting his laptop.

"Put your fancy suit on and flub your way in," Rhiannon paused, not wanting to crack a stupid pun, but she couldn't help it, "Oh, and that's what she said."

Dean snorted and Rhiannon soon joined him in laughing at her own joke. She just couldn't resist a set up for 'That's what she said' or even the occasional 'That's what he said.' Sam however, didn't seem to find it too funny, at first, but as he tried to give them both the bitchface his glower dropped and he chuckled a little bit too.

"Anyway! Dean, suit up, we're going to go check out the park."

"You're telling me to suit up?" Dean acted like he was offended, but he was already getting up and heading to the dresser.

"Well obviously I am so not going to wear this, not only does it not even match, but it's really not practical for hunting. What if I have to run? These shorts are so going down," Rhiannon tried not to blush as she realized that both Sam and Dean already knew she had stars on her underwear. "And besides, these flip flops, I love 'em, but these are not my hunting shoes."

Sam tucked his laptop away and went over to the closet. He flipped through the hangers and decided on an all black suit and an FBI badge, seemed like the best way to get into a crime lab. _God,_ he wondered, _what the hell kind of crime lab are they going to have in this Podunk town? _He slipped into the bathroom to change as Rhiannon and Dean kept arguing about what to wear and who's car to take and who was going to kick more ass. Sam rolled his eyes when they got to the ass-kicking part. Rhiannon was barely over five feet tall and probably didn't weigh more than 100 lbs. He had a sneaking suspicion she was going to play the role of brains or bait and Dean was going to be the one doing the fighting. And though he'd never tell her…

He knew how she woke up that morning. He remembered how soft she had felt beneath his fingers. The way she had curled up against him made him feel like he could have crushed her into him with one arm. She was small and, at least when she was asleep, she felt very fragile.

But now was not the time for that. Sam undid the knot he had tried to put in his tie, which had come out crooked and too skinny because he wasn't paying attention, and he retied it before hesitantly leaving the bathroom. On the one hand, he hoped he looked good, both for Rhiannon and the sake of his scam; on the other hand he was thoroughly convinced that all of this was going to be for nothing. Not only was he positive that it didn't matter to Rhiannon if he looked good as long as Dean was around, but he had a feeling there wasn't going to be much evidence on such a small gold chain. Cases never turned out well when they couldn't figure out what they were hunting.

Rhiannon stopped breathing momentarily, maybe a little longer than that, when Sam strolled back in the room. There was absolutely no confident swagger to his step, unlike his brother, and she found that completely adorable. He looked astonishing, at least to her, and she was fairly certain to any other female with a pulse. As he walked back over towards them she forced herself to start breathing again. Sam put his hands on the back of her chair and leaned forward slightly.

"So you two need to stop arguing, you guys are taking Rhiann's car so I can take the Impala, alright?" his voice was caught somewhere between barking an order and pleading with them when he said this.

"Yeahtotallyfersure. I'mgonnagogetchangednow,bye!" Rhiannon garbled the sentences out in two words and dashed out of the room like a scared cat.

"Damn that girl sure is weird, Sammy."


	5. Chapter 5

Rhiannon stood outside the door to the Winchesters' room, inhaling very deeply and exhaling very slowly. She closed her eyes and moved her hands up and down in imitation of what she assumed her diaphragm was doing as she tried to relax. Her thoughts were racing, darting between ideas of how to catch these murderers and what it would be like to kiss Sam.

"Oh for the love of God, just stop it!" she scolded herself.

"Stop what?" Dean asked as he opened the door. He had changed into some dark jeans that were probably torn when he bought them and a dark green t-shirt and, of course, his leather jacket. Were those cowboy boots?

Rhiannon peeked in the room and swiveled her head to check the parking lot, as if she'd be able to find an answer in either of those places. Unfortunately for her, there was no answer to be found. But she did notice that the Impala was gone.

"I uh… nothing, just… nothing," she shook her head and gently pushed past Dean into his room. Normally Dean would find that kind of rude, but since she had been pressed up against him when he didn't get out of the way, he didn't really mind.

Dean stood stock still for a moment as he took her in. Her reddish hair caught the sunlight enough for him to notice a golden hue to it; it reminded him of a sunset he had seen once out in Arizona. He could swear her green eyes were flecked with gold and wondered if he had just never noticed before.

Rhiannon had changed into a black strapless top that laced up the sides and a leather jacket that had ¾ length sleeves and was long enough to reach down to her thighs. Dean had a feeling the black studded belt she had on was probably holstering something. She had dark green cargo pants on that had upwards of twelve pockets on them, and she was wearing low-heeled black boots which Dean thought looked like they might be steel-toed. Of course he was wrong, they were in fact iron-toed, but that was thanks to a custom job she'd had a friend work on them. Jared, the leather worker she knew, also tipped the heels in silver as a bonus.

The seven different rings she was wearing all looked like they'd hurt to get hit with and they were all silver. She had her black gloves on again, the ones with Devil's Traps stitched on them, but she had removed the fingers. And of course she had accessorized with bangle bracelets, some of them were iron, some were silver. She had a black and green rosary around her neck and some kind of crystal stars in her ears. She had two flasks hooked on her belt, but Dean couldn't tell what was in them, and a pouch hanging from one of her belt loops.

"You sure do come prepared, for a little lady," Dean grinned and lifted the pouch in his hand to feel the weight, felt like salt.

"Yeah well I may be tiny, but I sure can pack a punch," Rhiannon grinned and cracked her knuckles. She was ready for a fight, lately she'd been over-stressed and she could use a little release. If some poor hapless demon or vampire or minion of god knows what happened to get beaten up a little, so be it.

_She is not kidding,_ Dean couldn't help but think. She really was tiny, just barely passed for 5'0" tall. She was thin too, not a whole lot of curve to her, just enough, and it looked like she was mostly built of muscle. Dean tried to shake these thoughts out of his head as he loaded his gun and stashed knives of various sizes and materials in his pockets, sleeves, and boots.

"So what have you got to work with here? I mean since we don't know exactly what we're hunting…" Dean made sure to pack salt-rounds, iron-rod rounds, and regular rounds for his shot gun, as well as normal and silver bullets for his pistol.

"Well, aside from the armory in my car I have two silver knives," she patted a pocket on each leg, "An iron chain, don't look at me like that, you never know when it will come in handy. I've got a brass knife in my boot, a normal switchblade in my back pocket, and," she pulled her jacket back to reveal a…

"Jesus, is that a freakin' Desert Eagle?" Dean's eyes popped, he was so jealous.

"Yup, you may not have realized, being the pansy that you are, that I am not very intimidating on my own, so I bring toys that are," she grinned and patted her jacket pockets to make sure she had brought multiple types of rounds.

"Really? No I haven't noticed, of course I'm just plain terrified of females," Dean grinned and grabbed a jug of holy water he had whipped up while waiting for her.

"Yeah, I'm sure you just run away screaming from 'em… the next morning. Anyway, let's see what else. Oh! This is salt, as you noticed, and this is holy water," she tapped the flask on her left hip. "I've also got these," she tugged a small pouch out of one of her pant pockets, "It's a various assortment of crystals, never know when they'll come in handy."

"And what's this?" He flicked the flask on her right hip.

"That? Oh that," she tugged it, unclipping it from her belt, and took a swig. "That is Absolut 100, you know, in case someone gets hurt and we need to clean the wound," she said with a shit-eating grin on her face.

"Oh of course, god forbid I get shot… again…" Dean said, only half joking.

"I've got more stuff in the car, we'll get to that when we get to the park though. No point busting out the big guns here…" she trailed off.

"So…" Dean just looked at her, trying to fight an awkward silence.

"Let's go?" Rhiannon finished the sentence for him.

"Yes, definitely."

They drove in near silence, except for the Pure Prairie League CD playing quietly in the Trans Am. Dean was sort of shocked to find that it really wasn't that awkward, at least not for him. He hoped she felt comfortable anyway…

"So what do you think we're dealing with?" Rhiannon asked as she exhaled smoke from a drag of her Marlboro.

"Honestly, I don't have a clue. Who would sell blood to a vampire? A demon maybe? They seem pretty greedy," Dean shrugged and suddenly wished he'd brought his own flask for, ah, cleaning wounds.

"I mean, maybe, but you'd think they'd have a better way to do it. Demons can get into the In-Between just as easily as faeries, you'd think they'd drain them there so they'd be less likely to get caught…"

"The In-Between?" Dean asked, looking at her as if the answer would be written on her face.

"The world between worlds. Like, when the faeries slip through water, it's the place they go for a few seconds, it's where you are when you're not anywhere,"

"So like, I was in a coma once, and there was a reaper there with me. I thought I was just wandering around the hospital…"  
"Yeah, that was really the In-Between. I mean you were still in the hospital, I guess, the In-Between kind of overlaps this world and the next," Rhiannon took one last drag from her cigarette and flicked it out the window.

"How do you know all this?" Dean figured if all this stuff was in books, Sam would have known it too.

"I, uh, I've had a lot of dealings with faeries, they seem to think I'm their go-to hunter when shit hits the fan… I would find it annoying but," she shrugged, "I don't know, they always tend to reward you, it's the Fair Folk way. Plus they really aren't too bad to deal with, conniving, tricky, even deceptive sometimes, but they never lie. You just have to read between the lines… a lot. And never assume with a faerie."

"That's… just… plain weird," Dean thought if they kept talking about this he would get a migraine. "So if it's not demons who is it?"

"I don't know, someone greedy, or just plain stupid. If a vamp drinks enough faerie blood they can go kind of berserk, like supercharged vamps or something. Whoever is doing it doesn't think ahead. If they keep killing off faeries…." Rhiannon shuddered; she didn't want to think about it.

"What? What happens if there are no more faeries?" Dean didn't like the tone in her voice, she sounded almost scared.

"I… I'm not sure, but I know the faeries… they keep the flowers growing and the trees alive. The way humanity has been going lately… without faeries nature will probably just… die off."

"What!" Dean was confused, but he still didn't like the sound of that.

"I mean, we keep building more and more, but more and more animals and birds and trees and plants keep dying off, going extinct. Faeries are one of the last defenses Mother Nature has against us…against humans."

"…Are you shittin' me?" Dean really didn't like the sound of that, "Is there really a Mother Nature?"

Rhiannon laughed and turned off her headlights as they pulled into the park. "If there is, I haven't met her yet," she parked and shut off the engine. She always felt sad when she pulled the keys out of her Trans Am, like seeing a best friend in a coma.

"So," she unbuckled her seat belt and turned around to face the back seat. She reached down below the seat and flicked something and the bottom of the seat popped up.

"Holy… Jesus… Lord Al… I think I'm in love," Dean couldn't quite complete any phrase as he looked in the secret compartment of her Trans Am.

There were two shotguns, one sawed off and one double barrel. There was another Desert Eagle, a Smith & Wesson SW500 Magnum, and a couple more.

"Jesus Christ, is that submachine gun!" Dean's eyes popped.

"Yup, Colt 9mm,"

"And that .22?"

"Winchester Wildcat," Rhiannon was absolutely beaming with pride. "Wanna see the trunk?"

"HELL YEAH!" Dean grabbed his shotgun out of the back after Rhiannon took her sawed off shotgun and closed the compartment.

They both slid out of the car and headed around to the trunk of the car. Rhiannon unlocked it and popped it open. She pulled out another key and moved the lining of the trunk up to reveal a small lock. She slid the key in and turned it.

The compartment she opened vaguely reminded Dean of the one in his Impala. The lid of it had small compartments all over it, like a toolbox. They were filled with various types of ammunition, crystals, charms, pendants, and god knew what else. The compartment itself housed mostly blades. There was a machete.

"Oh just one?" Dean asked, picking up the machete and carefully replacing it in the trunk. He noticed it was etched with runes, though he had no idea what sort of runes they were.

"Sorry, I usually travel alone," she shrugged and picked up the machete and a strap. She slid her jacket off revealing her bare shoulders and arms. Dean could see she hand metal bands around her girly biceps, they had runes etched into them too, Dean thought they were for protection. She strapped the sheathed machete to her back and slid her coat back on.

There was also a full Japanese sword set: katana, wakizashi, and tanto. They were slick black with a pattern of silver vines on the hilts and sheathes. There was an array of switchblades, pocketknives, boot knives, buck knives, bowie knives, and …was that an athame? All the blades were of different materials and looked like they were from different time periods too.

Dean slowly picked up the wakizashi, his eyes wide and glistening with a childlike joy, "Can I? Please?"

Rhiannon chuckled and smiled at him, "Yeah, but just for tonight."

Dean practically jumped up and down, she thought he might even say squee, but he wasn't quite that giddy apparently. He strapped the wakizashi around his waist and pulled it out of the sheath to admire it. There was something odd about it…

"The blade is diamond edged, it's good against anything …impure… So don't cut yourself with it Deany-boy,"

He paused as he was sheathing the blade; it was half in half out, "Don't ever call me that again."  
"Yeah I kind of regret it now too, sorry," Rhiannon looked down at her feet, she was kicking up dust in the parking lot.

"So, I'm guessing, if they are monitoring the park they have crystals set up somewhere near the bodies of water, either to track faeries or to track movement between worlds. I didn't see any so if that is the case, they are probably buried…"

"Well did you bring a shovel?" Dean asked as she shut the compartment in her trunk.

She reached into the trunk and dragged her toolbox forward, moving aside bags of salt She popped the toolbox open and pulled out a spade. She shut the toolbox, then the trunk; grinning she handed the spade to Dean.

"Really?"  
"Digging is a boy's job," she said with a coy smile on.

_Damn it, I can't believe she's using…feminine charm on me. I can't believe it's working!_ Dean thought, "Fine, I'll do the boy's job, but you better do the girl's job later…" he mumbled.

"What?" Rhiannon turned to look at him, she really hadn't quite heard what he said, but she had an idea.

"I said fine, but you're cooking dinner later!"

Rhiannon opened her mouth to snap back at him but he cut her off.

"So, shall we get to it? It's already dark out," Dean stated matter-of-factly.

The two of them headed into the park together, silence slipping over them like a blanket. Not like your favourite blanket that you have to have to sleep every night, but like the one on top of that, the one you like well enough.

Unfortunately for them it was a rather large park. And it wasn't lacking for bodies of water. There were a few decorative fountains, bird baths, creeks, man made ponds and mini waterfalls.

_I'm getting really tired of miniature things,_ Rhiannon thought as she checked the area around the waterfall.

They came to a creek that was somewhat deeper in the wooded area of the park than most of the places they had already checked. It would have taken Dean forever to dig through the area, but luckily for him, and his back, there was already a faerie lingering near the creek.

He was a very thin, lanky sort of thing. Probably somewhere around 5'6", he had shaggy black hair that tumbled to his shoulders, complete with a few dark flowers in it. His muscles were sinuous and ropy. He had no shoes on and was wearing a tan tunic that looked as if it might have been made out of hemp and was long enough to nearly brush the ground. His eyes though, were the most disturbing part in Dean's mind. They were a vibrant green, the colour of grass in spring. And they were all iris, there were no whites to his eyes. His pupils were thin and slit like a cat's would be, and beyond that they were all green.

He drew his lips back and growled; his teeth were pointier than Dean would have imagined.

"Hey, hey it's okay," Rhiannon reached into one of the smaller pockets on her cargoes and pulled out a small cluster of dogwood and set it on the ground in front of her. "We mean you no harm Fair One, we are here seeking that which hunts you."

The faerie boy, for he looked not much older than 16, stopped growling but still looked wary as he reached forward and picked up the offering. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but Rhiannon wasn't listening. She noticed the creek behind him was rippling oddly, and then it began to shimmer. That was when she noticed small shining….**golden** things floating on the surface.

"Dean!" she screamed but it was too late.

An older, gruff looking red headed faerie came tumbling out of the creek screaming. She could smell the hair of his beard burning as he rolled across the ground. The earth beneath Dean and Rhiannon began to quake as the red headed faerie caught sight of both of them.

"NO! We're not the ones," but she was cut off as the dark haired faerie leapt at her. His face was contorted in rage, or was it contorting still?

Dean reacted quickly, yanking the golden chains off the redheaded faerie and throwing them on the one that had attacked Rhiannon, but it didn't seem to slow him down. Dean was rewarded by the redheaded faerie with a tackle. Dean hadn't realized until then that the faerie's nails were claw like as they tore into his chest.

He heard a scream from the tussle to his left between Rhiannon and the dark haired faerie.


	6. Chapter 6

AUTHOR'S NOTE:: So I like to type out accents sometimes, not Southern though because I can't figure it out, so if anyone has a hard time understanding what a character is saying just message me and I'll clear it up for you.

And yes, Hellsing fangirls, I'm basing my Scottish accent off of Father Anderson.

The stars were twinkling brightly, dotting the cloudless night sky. A light breeze shook the leaves on the trees, and somewhere a creek was just barely babbling. It should have been a very lovely night; it could have been very a nice night for romance.

But alas, Dean's ears were filled with the sound of shrieking and a faerie, a **freaking FAERIE **was trying to claw him to ribbons. And someone to the left of him was just **screaming** and would not stop. His heart thundered and then stopped when he heard the shrill screech echo through the night.

"Rhiann?" he called out as he drew his boot up and kicked the faerie in the chest, knocking him back.

"Dean!" she had somehow gotten the other, darker, faerie off of her and was on her feet. "Dean it's a shifter!"

And sure enough he could smell burning flesh. While Rhiannon had been trying to block an attack, she had caught him with her silver bangles and that had caused the screaming. She had taken the opening to knock him onto his back and had popped up quickly. She cursed wishing she had loaded her handgun with silver bullets. She knew she had a clip of silver bullets somewhere in her cargos, but she stomped on the damn thing's hand with the heel of her boot instead. He shrieked again as she silver heel pierced his skin. She grinned a moment too early though, because it pulled away, leaving a chunk of it's gooey shifty flesh and started running.

"Goddamnit," she hollered as she turned to Dean and grabbed the hair of the redheaded faerie. "We are NOT the ones hunting your kind you fool! We were trying to stop it! And now," she paused, panting, to look around, "the shifter has gotten away, and I'm just going to go ahead and blame you."

Dean stood up quickly once the faerie, the _real_ faerie, was off of him. "What the hell? A shifter, really? Why are they all so EFFED UP IN THE HEAD?"

"You cannae blame me! Tis not my doing that has lost yeh yehr prey!" he spoke for the first time with what Rhiannon pegged for a Scottish accent.

"Did I say it was your fault? No, but I'm blaming you anyway! And I don't know Dean, maybe it's because they are all secretly fugly monsters under their fake skin," she shrugged and offered a hand to the redheaded faerie, the look on his face made her feel cruel "Look, I'm sorry Fair One, we meant you no harm and I wish we had not come to cause any. None of this went according to plan…" she groaned. Why couldn't, just once, a hunt go smoothly? She almost laughed at herself, a smooth hunt? With the Winchesters?

"You're damn right it didn't! Now what the hell do we do?" Dean was not a happy camper at the moment.

"I don't know. Look, Fae, I think you should go back to your people, warn them. Tell them there is a shifter after them…tell them to trust no one, you know, like normal," Rhiannon was in no mood to put up with a faerie right then.

"Aye lass, Ah can't say ah'm fond of yehr tone, but good advice is good advice," And without so much as ever introducing himself, the faerie slipped back into the creek and disappeared. Both Dean and Rhiannon were quite alright with that at this point.

"So… now what? I mean we figured out what's draining these faeries…" Dean stretched and cracked his back.

"We need to check this area, see how he's tracking these faeries. Well I assume it's a he…" she grumbled. After a quick sweep of the area she realized there were no fresh patches of dirt, no indication that anyone had been digging recently. Still, Dean dug around as quickly as he could, he was anxious to get back, and found nothing.

"Well, I got squat," Dean wiped the spade clean and wiped the dirt off his hands.

"So then they must be tracking individual faeries. The only way he could do that is if he had a leaf from their home tree…. I wonder if all these faeries are from the same clan, then he'd only need one leaf to track the entire clan… It would make sense…"

"Wait what?" Dean had no idea what most of what she had just said meant.

"Faeries, they all have a home tree. It's like… ah… have you seen Fern Gully?" Dean nodded when she said this. "Kay well, they all live in trees, right? So imagine like… a giant tree. The faeries don't necessarily live in it, but they are all birthed there and inhabit the surrounding area usually. And if he had a leaf from a home tree and a witch with the right spells, he could track their movements… Even use it to mask his energy, which would explain why they were so easy to catch. Faeries aren't very trusting usually."

"Yeah, I got that," Dean said as he looked at the gashes on his forearm. He rinsed the wounds off in the creek before snagging Rhiannon's flask and dumping some of the alcohol on the cuts. "God that burns."

"That means it's working dumb ass…. So this shifter, he's been to, well I'm guessing Scotland, he's gotten a leaf, and he's used it to make an essence, so the faeries will think he's one of their own…He can't be working alone, there's at least a witch involved," Rhiannon could feel a migraine coming on. She hated doing all this thinking. She yanked her flask back from Dean and took a rather large swig. "Let's go, I'm tired and I don't think there's anything left here for us…"

They loaded their weapons back into the car slowly. They weren't in any real hurry. Rhiannon stopped at some burger joint for Dean; he absolutely had to have a bacon cheeseburger with extra onions. She rolled her eyes at him as he hopped out of the car excitedly; it was the fastest he'd moved since he got jumped by a faerie. She snickered a little at the idea of Dean getting jumped by a faerie. After a few minutes of waiting in the car she lit a cigarette and changed out her CDs for Music from Big Pink, an album by The Band.

She would have wondered what took him so long, but when he came out he had pie too. "Sorry, she said they had fresh cherry pie coming out of the oven so I had to wait for it," Dean grinned like a child who actually got a pony for their birthday and held out his fries to her.

"No thanks, I'm good. The smell of burning shifter always kill my appetite," she explained, but Dean was chowing down before she even got two words out.

She flicked the butt out of her window just as they pulled into the parking lot. Dean had already finished his fries but was waiting to destroy the burger till he got inside. Sam looked out the motel window when he heard her engine pulling in. He couldn't help but smile a little when he saw his brother and his newfound friend returning safely, if a bit dirty.

"Wait," Dean said as he grabbed Rhiannon's wrist just before she reached for the door.

"What? Did you forget something in the car?" she asked, hoping, praying, he wasn't going to say what she thought he was going to say.

"No," Dean whispered as his hand slid from her arm to her lower back, gently he pulled her very close to him. "No I just, don't want to do this in the room," And that was all the warning she got before Dean bent his head down and pressed his lips to hers.

At first she reacted reflexively, moving closer to him, tentatively kissing him back.

Sam shut the curtains and stalked over to the couch, flicking the television on to whatever channel it had been left on.

When Rhiannon lifted her hand to rest on Dean's chest, her brain started working again. This was not the way Sam had felt under her palms; this was not the boy she wanted to do this with. She pulled away.

"Dean…."

He put his forehead against hers, looking her in the eye "What?"

"Dean, no. I'm sorry; you're a real good guy, and a great hunter. Don't get me wrong, you're charming and everything but I… I'm sorry, I just… That's not how I feel about you," she kept her eyes on the ground as she pulled away from him. She was trying very hard not to cry, even though she didn't know why she wanted to cry.

Dean backed away from her a bit, moving closer to the door. "Oh, well… this is… really awkward then. Heh, I'm sorry… can we just pretend this didn't happen?"

Rhiannon laughed, "Good god yes. I like you, I do. I like being around you, so I don't want this to mess…with… that. Does that make sense?"

Dean grinned and put his arm around her shoulders, "Yeah, it makes sense." He opened the door to his room and could practically feel his brother brooding. "Ah shit Sammy, I forgot to get you some pie!"

"No thanks I'm good," Sam said without moving or looking at them.

"So did you find anything out Sam?" Rhiannon asked, plopping down next to him on the couch.

"Yeah," Sam shifted away from her, "There were traces of skin on the chain, besides the faerie's. I think it's a,"

"Shifter?" Dean cut him off.

"Yeah how did you…" And for a moment it almost seemed like Sam wasn't pissed off.

"Yeah we met him," Dean said through massive bites of burger.

"And?" Sam asked, with a bitchy tone in his voice.

"And he got away. Rhiannon thinks he might be working with a witch" Dean shoved the last bite of his burger in his mouth.

"What? Really?" Sam's bitchfit demeanor gave way to sheer curiosity.

"Yeah, the way he's tracking them, and the way he's disguising himself… He has to have a witch on retainer. I can't think of any other explanation," Rhiannon didn't feel like explaining every last little detail again. Her brain hurt just a little too much.

"Just because you can't think of it, doesn't mean there isn't another explanation. I've never heard of a shifter and a witch working together," Sam was back to being sullen.

Rhiannon tried not to take his words personally, but they stung, she had to admit it. "I know it's odd, that's why I'm wondering if there is something bigger going on here, but I just don't have it in me tonight. "

"You think they're workin' for someone?" Dean shoveled pie into his mouth. He looked happy as a damn clam.

"More than likely. This seems like a bigger scheme than I originally thought. But maybe not, I don't know," she shrugged. She was tired; all she really wanted was to go back to her room and sleep, but the way Sam was acting… She just couldn't walk away without trying to figure out what was wrong. She peeled her jacket off and tossed it on the side of the couch. She noticed Sam had slid even farther away from her.

"Well," Dean said as he chomped down his last bit of pie, "I'm going to take a shower, since _you_ made me do all the digging, I'm freaking filthy." Dean tossed his jacket off and pulled off his boots. He tossed the empty box his pie had come in into the garbage can and took over the bathroom.

Rhiannon and Sam sat quietly for a few minutes, but she couldn't take it for very long.

"What's wrong Sam?" she asked, turning to face him.

"Nothing," he grumbled.

"Really Sammy? I'm so not buying that,"

"Don't call me Sammy."

"Okay, seriously what the HELL is your problem? Did I do something to you? Is this about last night? What? Look I'm freakin' sorry! I was drunk, I don't remember it, and I won't do it again, jeez!"

"It has nothing to do with last night! I'm fine! I just…have a headache, and a back ache," Sam muttered the first excuse he could really think of. He knew he didn't really have the right to get mad. It wasn't her fault that he wished he had been the one she kissed. He couldn't get mad at her for that…

"Well why didn't you say so Sammy? I got a remedy for that," she smiled, maybe for once she could actually make him feel better.

"What? Some kind of herbal remedy or something?" Sam tried not to sound happier. He tried to not enjoy it when she called him Sammy; but damnit, he did like it.

"Ah no, here, you ah, turn this way," she grabbed his shoulders and turned him to face her. She got up and perched on the arm of the couch behind him, facing his back.

"Oh, no really, you don't have to do that," Sam was glad she wasn't looking at his face because he blushed a little bit.

"Oh, really it's fine. I'm great at massages, but there is a catch," she said as her hands started working his shoulders. _Wow,_ she thought, _these are some massive shoulders._ She was almost intimidated; he had a lot of back, how was she ever going to get it all?

"A catch?" Sam asked, but he already didn't care. Her bony little fingers were already working on the knots in his shoulders and it felt amazing.

"Yeah, some day, some where, you're going to have to return the favour."

"Uh huh," Sam groaned. God, it had been so long since he'd gotten a back massage, let alone a good one.

Rhiannon smiled, her face was flushed. She was really starting to enjoy the way Sam felt under her fingers. She moved her hands in and started working the knots in his neck with her thumbs and his head fell forward. Lord, he had some huge knots. Poor thing must be so stressed.

"No wonder you have a headache Sam, these knots in your neck are ridiculous," she slowly worked her fingers down to his back.

"It's been a long time since I've gotten a massage," Sam mumbled, he felt like he was falling in to a trance.

"I can tell," she commented and continued trying to work at the knots in his back. To be honest though, she was used to giving massages to bare backed subjects. "So ah, and um, feel free to say no to this if you think it'd be awkward but um… I mean, this would just be, like a lot easier if ah, you um, didn't have a shirt on, ya know," the sentence stumbled out of her mouth. She was tripping over her own words.

"Oh, ah, uh yeah," Sam's face flushed a deep red as he tugged off both of his shirts.

Rhiannon fought back at whimper. Yep, she was certain she was massaging the back of a Roman god. She was entirely sure this was perfection personified. Now she really was intimidated. Those muscles… they were so big and glistening and… her mind shot off into space. She'd never be able to cover the entire expanse of his back.

"Rhiann?" Sam repeated.

"What? Sorry I… uh…" She didn't even bother to try to finish that sentence.

"I asked you if this will upset Dean," Sam repeated himself.

"What? Why would it?" She sounded utterly confused.

"Well I mean, you two have gotten pretty close…" Sam wasn't sure what else to say at that point.

"What? I like Dean and all, he's pretty cool, but he's not really…. I mean, he doesn't seem like the commitment type and I… I just feel like, being a hunter, I don't have a lot of time. So I don't want to waste my time with people that I know aren't interested in love. Ya know? Maybe you don't. Boys never get that…Ah, sorry, point is no, this isn't going to upset Dean," she felt like a damn idjit at that point.

"No, I think I get it. Dean's always trying to get me to 'hook up' with random girls and I just… don't see the point. I guess sleeping with random girls might be fun but I'd rather have a girl I can depend on."

"Yes exactly! Damn, it's a good thing we have you Sammy, I think between the three of us we have two brains," she laughed. At least Sam knew how to say what he meant.

"Oh you seem pretty smart to me, just a little awkward sometimes," he tried not to think about how cute he found her awkwardness.

"You overestimate me," she was working the knots in his lower back. That was when she noticed they had somehow gotten closer; he was practically sitting between her knees. She could just lean forward, kiss his neck, his earlobes, his cheek if she wanted to. She tried not to think about sliding her hands over his shoulders and down his chest. She tried not to think about how badly she just wanted to throw herself at him at this point.

It was right about then that Sam noticed he could feel her breath on his neck, on his shoulders a little. Goosebumps ran across his skin every time she exhaled. He shivered a little. How was this tiny little girl making his heart pound so hard? How was she making his head spin?

"Rhiann, I think you underestimate yourself…" he sounded a little breathless.

She shrugged but then realized he wasn't facing her so he couldn't see that, "I don't know, maybe, I guess."

That's about when she couldn't fight her impulses anymore. Her body had told her mind to fuck off and was taking over. She slid forward off the arm of the couch so she was sitting right behind Sam with her legs out on either side of him. She leaned forward and he could feel her whole body pressed against his back. Her hands slid around his waist and her arms encircled him. She pressed her cheek against his back.

"Sammy, if you want me to stop just say so," and she pulled back, wanting to plant kisses over every inch of his beyond perfect body.

"So guys, anybody want to go get some beer?" Dean asked as he waltzed out of the bathroom.

Rhiannon leapt off the couch so fast she kneed Sam in the back and just as he registered the new pain in his back he realized she was sitting in a chair at the table across the room.

"Yeah sure, I'll go," Rhiannon snatched up her jacket and darted out the door, heading for the nearest gas station. _Goddamn I'm a fucking fool, _she thought as she fantasized about the 30-pack she was going to get. She took a few swigs off her flask and sped way beyond the speed limit.


	7. Chapter 7

Rhiannon giggled as she stumbled back to her room, 10 beers and 7 shots later.

"There is no way," she hiccupped, "I'm staying in there again. Hah!" She laughed even harder as she remembered her sad ploy at seducing Sam. "Did I really think that would work?" Thanks to some Guinness and one Mr. Jack Daniels she found herself hilarious right then. Of course in the morning she'd be kicking herself for hitting on Sam and for not trying harder.

She struggled to get the key in her door for a few minutes; again she thanked Mr. Daniels, but eventually unlocked the damn thing and practically fell into her room. Her phone was lit up and vibrating, but she flipped it over and tumbled into bed, whatever it was, she'd deal with it in the morning.

Dean was practically rolling on the floor laughing at his little brother, "Dude I cannot believe you got that close and stopped because of me!"

"It's not funny Dean," Sam was doing his whole brooding thing again.

"No, it's hilarious! You know I tried to kiss her tonight," The laughter in Dean's voice was starting to fade.

"Yeah I saw you two…" Sam really didn't want to think about that again.

"Uh huh, I've never been rejected so fast," Dean muttered as he took another shot of Jack Daniels.

"What? No," Sam couldn't believe that a girl hadn't fallen for Dean.

"No, for real. She said she 'didn't feel that way about me,' Pfft! What's feeling got to do with it?" Dean set the bottle of Jack down and cracked open the last beer.

Sam put his phone back in his pocket, "I don't know Dean, maybe sometimes, some people actually expect it to mean something."

"What? Where's the fun in that?" Dean grinned even though he knew Sam was right. Sam was always right; it infuriated him.

"You're right Dean, there isn't any fun in that," Sam swiped the bottle of Jack off the table as he thought about Ruby. That had been fun and it hadn't meant anything. That deceptive bitch…well she had been good in the sack.

"Well, here's to fun," Dean held his beer up and Sam clinked his shot glass against it. The night faded on quickly from there and soon the sun was up, the birds were chirping, and their alarm was buzzing.

Not that Dean would wake up; the alarm was mostly set for Sam. He rolled slowly out of bed and stumbled to the bathroom. More than anything in the world Sam wanted to brush his teeth. After he had accomplished that he cranked the shower up as hot as it would go.

When he stumbled out of the bathroom, Dean was up, if that's what you called it, and immediately blew past Sam to take over the bathroom. Sam groggily changed his clothes and pulled his laptop out of it's bag and started looking for maps of the area.

"Dean, there's three sewer entrances surrounding the park here," he pointed out as Dean stepped out of the bathroom, still in a towel and drying his hair with another.

"Uh huh," Dean wandered over towards the dresser.

"So if this is a shifter, shouldn't we start there?"

"No Sammy, we should start with breakfast. I don't know about you but I could use something big and greasy," Dean grumbled as he tugged an outfit out of the drawer.

Sam's stomach chose that precise moment to rumble as he tried very hard not to make a 'that's what she said' remark. "Yeah, but after that…"

"Sure Sammy, we'll troll the sewers after breakfast," Dean chuckled as he tugged on his jeans. "Think we should call Rhiann? She might want to go."

Sam picked up his phone, no missed calls, no new messages, "No, she's a big girl. If she wants to hunt with us, she will, but I don't think she does."

"Whatever, she's your girlfriend Sam," Dean pulled his t-shirt over his head and slipped his leather jacket on.

"She's not my girlfriend," Sam barked back at him.

"Whatever you say Sammy, that's your own damn fault,"

"Will you just lay off Dean?" Sam slammed his computer shut and put as much anger into tying his shoes as possible.

Rhiannon groaned and tugged the blankets up over her head. She never wanted to get up, never wanted to open her eyes again. Had she really been that dumb? "Oh my god, I really came on to the sweetest thing I've met since that possessed toddler in Rhode Island," she covered her face with her pillow and dug into the bed.

Screw the shifter, screw the faeries, and screw the Winchesters; why would anyone ever get out of bed? Sleeping had to be the greatest thing in the world. But damn, she was thirsty. It felt like she was tearing her soul out of her body as she crawled out of bed, literally, and crawled into the bathroom to wash her face and brush her teeth. She put on her sunglasses to walk to the vending machines and get three bottles of water. Even though she knew better, she downed one bottle on the walk back to her room. She downed another bottle before she even got in the shower, and killed the last one as she was getting dressed even though she was still soaking wet.

She snatched her phone off the table, vaguely recalling it had buzzed at some point in the night. There was a missed message, her breath hitched; it was from Sam. He was… apologizing? It was hard to tell; clearly he had been plastered when he typed it. She was pretty sure he was apologizing for something that had happened last night. Was it for being an ass or for being shirtless? She wasn't sure. Either way she knew he shouldn't apologize so she strapped on her boots, grabbed her bag, and sauntered blindly over to their room; she had left her sunglasses on the table on accident. But when she rapped on their door, no one answered. She scanned the parking lot, no Impala.

She sighed and meandered to her Trans Am, thankful for the spare pair of sunglasses in the glove box. Two knives and a 9mm fell out of the glove box when she opened it. She nearly cut her hand as she reflexively tried to catch the knives, but luckily she grabbed one by the handle and dropped the other. The gun was not loaded, she thanked god for that too.

Once she had gathered all her things back into the glove box she slid her darkest pair of aviators over her eyes and stuck her keys in the ignition. She smiled as the engine roared to life.

"Damn I love you baby," she patted the dash board and pulled a pack of cigarettes out of her pocket. Lighting one, she decided she was in the mood for Chinese; her stomach felt like it was trying to devour itself. She cruised up the road, recalling she had seen a small restaurant with the word jade or dynasty or palace or great wall or something like that on the sign out front.

She tried to ignore the slight sinking feeling she felt in her chest as she scoped the parking lot and noted there was no Impala there either. She ordered General Tsao's spicy chicken and an order of chicken fried rice as well as a side of crab rangoon. She demolished nearly all of it in less than 15 minutes, washing it down with three glasses of green tea and three sake bombs. She bit her tongue when the waiter brought her alcohol; this was a Chinese restaurant, not a Japanese restaurant, but arguing with your waiter about ethnicity was always a horrible idea.

She paid for her meal and took what was left of her rice and rangoon back to the motel with her. When she got back she knocked on the Winchesters' door, but again there was no answer. She sighed and kicked the door, actually leaving a small dent in it. Oops. She leaned against their windowpane and pulled out her cell phone. Her thumbs moved faster than the eye could see as she shot a quick text to Sam, basically telling him that he had no reason to be sorry. Then she felt stupid and sent him another more elaborate message about how she was the moron and how she should be sorry; she promised never to act that way again.

"I mean really, what the hell was I thinking?" she spoke aloud to no one really, mostly just herself, and headed back to her room.

Dean was getting tired of wandering the sewers aimlessly. Sure, they had found what was probably a shape shifter's lair, but outside of that, nothing. Okay, so maybe that was kind of a big deal. But there was nothing there indicating who he…she…it might be working with. Not only that, there was no sign of the shifter itself. Dean just wanted to go back to the motel and shower. He smelled like rotten…well rotten everything now.

"Sam, seriously," Dean whined like a child that was tired of shopping for furniture.

"Dean, we need to figure out what's going on. There's got to be something here, some clue we're missing," Sam was hell bent on finding something here. Lately the feeling of being a gigantic, literally he felt gigantic, screw up was getting to be a bit much. If he could just find something, some trail…

"Sam, we've scowered every inch of this place, it's not here," Dean grimaced as he heard a squelching noise under his shoe.

"Something has to be here!" Sam was so frustrated he thought he might punch someone, of course the only someone nearby was Dean…

"Look Sam, we found it's hidey hole, woohoo! Let's head back and see if Rhiann has found anything today," Dean was trying to get out of the freaking sewer without pissing Sam off anymore, albeit he wasn't trying very hard not to piss Sam off.

Sam's phone started vibrating in his pocket. Just as he finished reading the first message, he got another. He slipped his phone back into his jeans after reading both messages. "Yeah alright, let's go," he finally consented and they both turned and headed for the nearest exit.

Rhiannon spent almost ten minutes rifling through her massive purse, looking for her room key. She went back to her car, thinking she might have left it there, but found nothing. She was about to head back to the restaurant in case she had left it there, but decided to dump out the contents of her purse first. She spilled the purse out onto her driver's seat. Wallet, knife, change, tampon, make up bag, knife, more change, hand cuffs, rope cuffs, hand lotion, one more knife, back up flip-flops, more lotion, at least 5 different bracelets, "Ah hah!" she jumped in triumph as she finally found her room key and scooped the rest of it back into her purse.

She looked around once more and still didn't see an Impala in the parking lot. She picked up one pocketknife and slid it in her back pocket, and snatched up a silver one and clipped it to her jeans. Feeling somewhat safer she headed back to her room. She wondered where the Winchesters were, even though she knew she'd be better off skipping town and never answering their calls again. But the thought of it made her heart sink and for the first time in her life she was willing to admit she had no idea what to do. She knew what she _should_ do and she knew what she _wanted_ to do, but what she would _actually do?_ She had no idea.

She slipped the key in the lock on the door and jiggled it back and forth before pushing the door open.

"Oh Jesus Christ!" she gasped and ducked as someone came flying at her.


	8. Chapter 8

"Dude, I'm sure she'll call back, just relax," Dean said as he got a change of clothes and a towel. God he could not wait to get in the shower.

Sam had dialed Rhiannon's number five times since they got back in their room; he'd actually called her only twice, but still.

"Yeah, I know, I guess I'm just a little…" Sam trailed off, unsure of what he was just a little of.

"Aw, are you worried about your girlfriend?" Dean said in a mocking cutesy voice.

"No, I'm not… worried. She can handle… herself…"

"Whatever you say Sammy," Dean commented as he shut the door to the bathroom behind him. He hoped Sam knew if he was going to try to make a move, he was in desperate need of a shower first. They both smelled like sewage.

Rhiannon tried to ignore the pain throbbing in her face. She wondered if her cheekbone was broken as she drove her fist up into someone's jaw. She was on the ground against the door of her motel room with someone wailing on her skull on top of her. She hiked her knee up into someone's gut and cracked them across the face with her elbow.

"Oh, gross," she muttered as blood dribbled out of whoever's mouth onto her shoulder. She plowed her fist into their side and shoved them off of her. She scrambled to her feet and landed a kick into their stomach.

"Oh, shit," she gasped. She was looking down at the girl she had found dead in the park her second day here. Of course it couldn't actually be that girl; she was one dead faerie.

The girl lunged at her, taking her back down to the floor. But Rhiannon used her momentum and brought both her feet up, kicking the girl off and behind her. She rolled towards the bed as the dead faerie tried to tackle her again. She kicked her in the face, which was somewhat ineffective since she was in fact wearing her rainbow flip-flops.

Rhiannon snagged the glass ashtray off the bedside table and brought it down on the shifter's temple.

Dean was cracking up at a show about some of the dumbest criminals he'd ever heard of when Sam's phone lit up. He made a mental note to tell Sam when he got out of the shower but forgot when he saw a video of someone robbing a gas station with fishnet stockings for a mask.

"Wow, what a moron," he grinned and his eyes shifted to the remnants of Jack Daniels left on the table. There was maybe three shots left, but he didn't reach for it, not yet.

"So how are we going to find this shifter?" Sam asked as he stumbled out of the bathroom, trying to dry his hair with a towel.

"I figure it's going to go back to it's lair at some point. Want to stake it out tonight?" Dean suggested, and then cracked up laughing at some teenager who tried to rob a liquor store with a squirt gun, only to find the guy behind the counter had a shotgun.

"I guess we could… Dean your phone is ringing," Sam noticed it lighting up on the table.

"Mm, what? Oh yeah… ah… yours was ringing while you were in the shower," Dean said as he rose to answer his, but it stopped ringing before he could open it. "Rhiannon," he said as he checked his missed calls.

"Yeah, mine too," Sam looked worried, "Let me get dressed and we'll go check up on her."

"Probably a good idea," Dean clicked the television off.

Sam had tugged on jeans and was looking for a shirt when someone started banging on the door. He nearly fell over a chair, and two duffel bags, trying to answer it.

"Jesus Christ, what are you boys doing in here? Having a good ole brotherly love session or something?" Rhiannon was panting when Sam opened the door.

When Sam opened the door… shirtless. She thought she just might faint; she was out of breathe and had a purple bruise on her cheek and there was a reddish blue bruise beginning to flower on her collar bone. She had just gotten a fair beating and now she had to stare at the thing that dreams were made of. She wasn't sure her heart could handle the stress; it just might give out.

"I uh… there's um… look ah you should just come with me," she panted out, her breathing ragged.

"Are you okay?" Sam was grabbing the nearest shirt, which turned out to be one of Dean's and pulling it on as he walked out of the room to follow Rhiannon.

"Yeah, I'm-I'm alright, just a little beating, nothing I couldn't handle," she had turned to talk to him and was now walking backwards, finding it impossible to turn back around. Dean's shirt was ludicrously tight on Sam. She was afraid, well not afraid, actually maybe hopeful was the word for it, but she thought Sam might just hulk out and his shirt would tear off.

Dean popped out of their room a few moments later and fell in step with Sam. "So ah, what's going on? Field trip?"

"Yes Dean, we're going to the zoo to look at the wild animals," Rhiannon rolled her eyes.

"Oh goody, I love the zoo. Can we see the tigers?" Dean mocked; he even threw in an excited little clap.

"No, we're just going to see the one exhibit today," Rhiannon said as they arrived at her door. She unlocked the door and was about to push it open, "And if I hear one word about the mess, I'll rip out your spine and beat you upside the head with it."

"Testy today aren't we?" Dean chuckled at her, but stopped as soon as the door was open.

There were clothes thrown everywhere. The table was turned over, the chairs were laying on the ground, and the bedside table was on it's side. The lamp was broken on the floor, and so was the television. All the sheets from the bed had been ripped off and were laying about the room. The only thing that wasn't in chaos was one chair.

One chair sitting in the middle of the room.

With a shifter tied to it.

Rhiannon had knocked the damn thing out with the ashtray and tied it up in a chair. She had used all the silver jewelry she had: necklaces, bracelets, anklets, and even a couple of rings. Over the jewelry she had wrapped duct tape around the arms of the chair and the shifter's wrists, and around the legs of the chair and the shifter's ankles.

"Holy…" Sam stared in disbelief; it was the dead girl they had found in the park.

"Jesus Rhiann," Dean exclaimed, noticing the giant gash in it's forehead and bruising along it's jaw.

"Yeah, the damn idjit thought I was the weak link," she chuckled and walked over to her dresser, sliding on her rings and bangles. She took the silver knife out of her pocket.

"Rhiann… what are you doing?" Sam asked; he didn't like the look in her eyes right then.

"Oh, I'm going to find out exactly what's going on here," she grinned and turned, slamming her fist into the unconscious shifter's face, leaving burns in the patterns of her rings. "What the fuck are you doing in my room?"

The shifter groaned and spat blood onto the floor, "Fuck you."

She slammed her fist into it's face again, this time in the gash in it's temple and it let out a shriek.

"Why are you draining faeries you sick fuck?" Rhiannon snarled.

Dean and Sam exchanged one of those knowing-psychic-brotherly looks. Something was not sitting right about any of this.

"For the money of course," the shifter grinned a bloody smile. It looked like it was missing a tooth, not that it wouldn't just sprout one back.

"Who's paying you?" Dean chimed in. This was a little too familiar for him, but at the same time he wanted answers just as badly as Rhiannon.

"If I knew, I still wouldn't tell you," the shifter cackled, droplets of blood flecking Rhiannon's shirt.

"Oh we'll see about that," Rhiannon almost… looked… happy as she trailed the blade of the knife down the shifter's arm without actually cutting it. "Look, you don't want me to do to you what I'd really like to do to you right now, so why don't you just be a good little girl… or boy… or whatever the hell you are, and tell me who you're working for."

"Like I said, I don't know."

"Fine," Rhiannon drew the blade down it's forearm, leaving a long gash, probably about six or seven inches.

The shifter's scream made Sam wince. He turned away and walked over to the door. He wanted to leave; he didn't want to see her acting like this. It was almost like she enjoyed torturing this thing. But he wanted to know what was going on. He felt somewhat stupid, standing there with his hand on the doorknob, knowing he wasn't actually going to leave.

"Man, you could make this a lot easier on yourself if you'd just tell us who you're working for," Dean said as he strolled next to Rhiannon, putting his hand on her wrist. She stood up straight and backed away from the shifter.

"And why should I tell some stinking murderous hunters, huh? What have you ever done for me?" It spat a mouthful of blood at Dean.

"How about," Rhiannon's voice was suddenly very calm, there was something dark about it, "I let you keep…" She paused to consider how to threaten it. She dragged the flat side of the blade along the shifter's cheek and stopped with the point just under it's lower eyelid. "How about I don't pop your eye out of it's socket? Hm? Sound fair?"

"LOOK!" The shifter screamed and tried to pull away from the knife but couldn't move, "I don't know his name okay? But I can tell you who I'm working with!"

Rhiannon grinned and stood up straight, "That's a good…it. So who is it?"

"A witch. He, whoever he is, introduced us. She works at the greenhouse on the outskirts of town. I don't know her real name, but I've been calling her Maeve. Now will you let me go, please?"

"Oh of course, right after you tell me why me. Why were you in my room? Waiting in ambush for me? Who sent you here?" Rhiannon was twirling the silver blade between her fingers.

"For your blood, of course," the shifter barely got the sentence out before the silver knife was buried to the hilt in it's chest.


	9. Chapter 9

Dean wondered how he had gotten stuck on burial duty. This was bullcrap; he didn't kill the shifter, why was he burying it? How did Sam and Rhiannon luck out with clean up? Goddamn rock paper scissors. Why did he ALWAYS pick scissors? One of these days he was going to pick rock, he swore it. Here he was out doing all the heavy lifting and Sam and Rhiann were inside scrubbing carpets and folding freaking laundry! This was so not fair!

He had taken the body to the wooded area behind the motel and was digging a nice grave for it when his phone beeped. He had a new text message. From Sam.

_"Take your time," _Was all it said.

"Oh great, I'm out here burying a body and Sam's trying to get laid! That is so… something I would do," Dean grumbled and sort of accepted it as karma.

"Rhiann… are you okay?" Sam asked; he was on his knees with a scrubbing sponge and spot remover, trying to get flecks of blood out of the carpet. So far he wasn't doing so bad.

"Yeah, I'm fine, why?" Rhiannon was sweeping up broken bits of light bulb from the lamp that had been knocked down.

"Well I just… I mean things got pretty intense there. I just thought maybe… something was wrong?" Sam couldn't bring himself to look up at her.

"You mean aside from the beating I took? Or do you mean about how I'm next on the hit list?" She bent over to pick up a piece of glass stuck in the carpet and nicked her fingertip on it. She dropped the shard into her dustpan and popped her fingertip in her mouth.

"Yeah about that… Why do they want your blood?" Sam finally looked at her. That had been bothering him since he heard it.

"Do you promise you won't… ah… freak out?"

Sam nodded. If he didn't freak out when this girl enjoyed torturing someone, he didn't think he was going to freak out now.

"Ah well, long story short… My mom, umm… Hmm. My mom wasn't the most discerning woman in the world. She met a man… he told her he was on shore leave, I guess, and over the span of a whole entire freakin' WEEKEND I guess she fell in love with him. That's what she said anyway. And ah, well, they um, well ya know, do what consenting adults do, and I guess on Sunday, he just walked into the Gulf and disappeared," Rhiannon tried to explain.

"I'm sorry… what? He just… oh… So," Sam stuttered.

"Yeah he was a faerie, and when I was 13… someone came. Someone was looking for him, his name was Faedir they said, I didn't know who they were but… They killed my mom. They spared me because I had his blood in me; they thought they could track him with my blood. They…did things to me. They took my blood to find him. The only reason they let me live was because it worked, I think. So I'm guessing he's dead too, along with my mom, and I'm going to kill whatever killed them. I guess I don't really care about him, he was just a sperm donor, but… they killed my mom," She was fighting back tears when she said this.

Now Sam understood why she was so crazed with the shifter; she thought maybe whoever was doing this killed her parents too. "Rhiannon, I'm sorry. I… " He set the bottle of spot remover down and stood up. "My mom… a demon killed our mom, I was just a baby though…" Sam sighed and looked down.

"Oh god Sam, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to… I didn't want to open old wounds…" She turned away from Sam and wiped the tears off her cheek with the back of her hand.

"No, it's… it's fine really. I just, I know how you feel," Sam wrapped his arms around her tiny little frame and held her tight. "I know how it feels to lose your whole family, I'm sorry you had to suffer that too."

Rhiannon turned in his arms and buried her face in chest. She held her breath and tried to stop the tears. Why was she crying over something that happened 8 years ago? She was being weak. She didn't want Sam to see her like this. She pulled away from him.

"I'm sorry Sam, I didn't mean to get all… crazy on you. If you want to go, I understand," And she bent over and started spraying spot remover on the remaining blood spatter. "Ya know, this will work a whole lot better if you just let it sit for awhile, then scrub it."

"Sorry, I'm not used to cleaning carpets I guess," Sam sounded sullen as he started picking up the sheets and remaking the bed.

She was glad he didn't leave, but she still felt completely awkward. She started gathering up her clothes and folding them in silence. She turned bright red every time she came to a bra or set of underwear and hoped Sam didn't notice.

Sam blushed as he laid the comforter back across the bed; Rhiannon was folding something small, black, and lacy. He had just slid his phone back in his pocket; he honestly didn't want Dean to come back any time soon. He wanted to talk to Rhiannon, he wanted to cheer her up, and Dean would just make a big joke of everything.

"So, how long do I leave that stuff on?" Sam asked as he flopped onto the newly made bed.

Rhiannon shrugged, "I don't know like 15 minutes? Looks like we got most of it cleaned up already anyway." She folded the last shirt that was on the floor and sat next to Sam on the bed. She snagged the remote off the bedside table that Sam had set back up and flicked on the television.

"So we're going to the greenhouse tomorrow aren't we?" Sam asked.

"Yup," Rhiannon smiled.

"Can I ask you something? You don't have to answer if you don't want to…"

"Anything, Sammy," she changed the station.

"So, if you're like… half faerie… do you like…" He didn't even know how to ask.

"Do I have faerie powers? Is that what you're asking?"

"Yeah I guess so," Sam laughed when she put it so bluntly, and she laughed with him.

"Eh, a few. I don't have the whole shebang like a real faerie. I've traveled through water a couple of times, but it's really hard and it was under dire circumstances, and to be honest I don't think I had any control where I landed."

"Really? I bet that was… Well I bet it was something else," Sam was almost jealous.

"It was cool, you can say it. But other than that, I mean, I can sort of … read plants and stuff, but nothing like the real faeries do."

"What do you mean?"

"Well like, real faeries can make the trees grow and the earth shake, and they can pretty much talk to nature. I just kind of, get vibes from a plant if I touch it," She shrugged; it was hard to explain if you'd never felt it.

"What sort of vibes?" Sam asked as he lay back on the bed.

"Well, and don't laugh, but I can tell if the plants are happy or not. They don't necessarily have feelings but they don't want to die anymore than we do and I can tell if they… think… they are in danger? Does that make sense?" She turned to face him.

"So you can sense disturbances in the plant Force?"

After the day she had, Rhiannon found his Star Wars pun absolutely hilarious and started busting up laughing. She fell back and rolled onto her side laughing. "Yes Sam, I am a Jedi of the Forrest. These are not the faeries you seek!" She laughed and waved her hand in Sam's face.

He grabbed her wrist gently and sat up, pulling her up too. "You do not want to sell me death sticks," He grinned. He couldn't believe he was cleaning up blood and making Star Wars jokes with a half-faerie.

Rhiannon smiled and words just started falling out of her mouth before she could stop them, "Goddamn Sam, you have a beautiful smile."

He blushed and let go of her quickly; he turned his face away and looked down as if there was something interesting on the comforter. "I-I, no, I mean, I'm nothing special."

"I'm sorry!" Her hands flew over her mouth, "That was reallyuncalledforandIdidn'tmeantoembarassyouandIwon'tdoitagainI'msorry!"

Sam couldn't help but think how cute it was, the way she crammed all her words together when she was embarrassed. "It's okay, don't be sorry."

"I just, I wasn't thinking, I'm sorry," She couldn't stop apologizing.

"Really, you don't need to be sorry," He finally faced her again now that his blushing had subsided and he realized her face was as red as a tomato.

"Um, mmkay," she mumbled and hopped up; grabbing the sponge up from the floor, she started scrubbing the spots she had left in the carpet. She scrubbed until all the blood was up and she couldn't think of a reason to stay on the floor. She slowly, hesitantly, reseated herself on the bed.

"You know, you've had a kind of rough day," Sam said.

"Yeah I know," she replied.

"Seems like it was kind of stressful…" Sam was angling at something.

"Yeah… it was… why?" Rhiannon almost looked back at him but she couldn't bring herself to turn all the way around to face him.

"Well, I owe you something don't I?" Sam thought he might be trying to play coy, but he wasn't sure, he'd never tried that before.

"Oh yeah," Rhiannon rolled her shoulders back and they popped a little bit, "Yeah my back is killing me now that you mention it.

"Well," Sam patted the bed in front of him, "Scoot on back and let me help."

Rhiannon's heart was thundering in her chest like she had just run a 5-mile race. She very slowly scooted back until she bumped into Sam's leg. His hands felt massive on her shoulders. He could span her back with both hands easily.

"Oh Jesus, Joseph, and Mary," she sighed as his thumbs worked the knots between her shoulder blades.

"If I press too hard just let me know, ok?" Sam asked as his thumbs ran over a damn mine field of knots between her shoulders.

"I uh… mm… yeah not, uh not gonna happen," she mumbled. Rhiannon was fairly certain this was the greatest thing in the world, ever.

"What did that shifter do to you?" Sam asked as his hands worked up, he only needed one to work the kinks in her delicate neck.

"Mm, maunno. My back's been bad since I was like… I don't know… uh sixteen," she found that the longer his hands were on her, the slower her brain was processing information.

Rhiannon gasped; Sam had slipped a thumb under the strap of her tank top and was working a massive knot on her shoulder.

"Ohmigawd Sammy…I love you, that's amazing," She groaned as he pressed harder.

"Heh, really? I didn't think I was very good at this but I'm glad um, to help," Sam mumbled. He was nervous as all hell and he only hoped she couldn't tell.

"Well if you ever feel the need to practice, I will totally be your test subject," she whimpered a little as he started working her lower back.

Sam laughed a little, "Well I'll call you next time I…want to…practice."

Rhiannon blushed. That sounded a little bit like a come-on. If Dean had said it she definitely would have thought he was coming on to her, but coming from Sam it sounded so innocent. Well, mostly innocent. She realized she was leaning back a little. Sam's fingers were on her collarbones as his thumbs were back up to working her shoulders. She leaned farther into him.

"I can't do this anymore," Sam blurted out.

"Oh, that's fine Sammy, you can stop if you want," Rhiannon started to pull away.

"No, not that," Sam put one arm over her shoulder and pulled her back until she was lying against him. He looped his other arm around her and tilted her chin up, his lips lighting gently on hers.

Rhiannon reached her arms back and curled them around his neck, pressing her lips eagerly against his. It seemed like time had frozen and the world was melting away while she was curled up in his arms.

"Thank god Sammy, I thought I was going to pop if I didn't get you sometime soon," Rhiannon whispered.

Sam dropped his arms from around her so she could turn to face him. Rhiannon sat in his lap and they were kissing again. At some point she managed to wrap her arms and legs around him; he put his arms around her waist and held her tightly up against him.

"And I thought I was the only one," Sam mumbled against her lips.

"Oh good god no," Rhiannon smiled and ran her fingers through Sam's hair. He was leaning back and suddenly they were both lying down.

Sam pulled his lips away from hers suddenly, "Rhiannon, I… I really do like you, but this might be a bad idea. I mean, every one I've ever gotten close to…"

"Has died or been a monster? Yeah Sam, I know. You and your brother have a reputation that precedes you," Rhiannon pushed his hair out of his face.

"So then we probably shouldn't do this…" Sam looked away. He was torn. More than anything he wanted to be doing exactly what they were doing, but he knew that it would probably just end up getting Rhiannon hurt.

"Sammy, I'm a big girl," she leaned down and kissed his cheek and down his neck, "I'll make my own decisions, thanks. I appreciate the concern though."

"Rhiann…" He gave her a pleading look.

She rolled her eyes and got off the bed. She slid the lock shut on the door. "Sam, were any of the girls you knew before like me?"

"What do you mean?"

"Any hunters in your past?"

"Well no…"

"And what about faeries? Ever date a faerie before?"

"I well… no… but," Sam didn't get to finish his sentence; Rhiannon cut him off.

"Then shut the HELL up and kiss me," She demanded as she hopped back onto the bed.


	10. Chapter 10

Rhiannon couldn't keep a gigantic smile off her face when she woke up in the morning. There was a nearly naked Winchester in her bed, which might be a death omen, but she didn't care. She snuggled up tight to him and planted little kisses all over his chest.

"Good God," shut muttered as her hands wandered all over him. She could swear he was chiseled from stone; warm, smooth, beautiful stone.

"Mm, what?" Sam rolled over and wrapped his arms tightly around her.

"Oh just admiring the scenery," She grinned and tangled herself up with him.

Sam blushed, he'd never had a girl…ah… appreciate him so much.

"For real Sam, you're like God's gift to womankind," she mumbled as she was nuzzling his neck.

"If you say so, just don't tell Dean, he thinks that's his title," Sam was, was he actually giggling? Wow, yeah he was really giggling. Rhiannon thought it was the most adorable sound she'd ever heard in her life.

"We should probably consider getting out of bed," Rhiannon grumbled, her disappointment apparent in her voice.

"Yeah probably, but all your clothes are over there… on the floor… and that's just not very good motivation," Sam whispered and nipped at her ear.

"Good point," Rhiannon agreed as she rolled on top of him.

Rhiannon shut the water off in the shower as fast as she could. They had been in there so long the water had been freezing cold for nearly half an hour, not that either her or Sam had really noticed. Sam realized he hadn't brought a change of clothes so he slid back into his jeans but didn't bother with Dean's extra tight shirt. He realized Rhiannon was still in the bathroom so he wandered back in and she was putting lotion on her legs.

"Not to sound like a perv, but you should totally let me do that," Sam was biting his lip and giving her the puppy dog eyes.

Despite the fact that she had spent all night with him, her eyes still popped a little when he said that. "I would be honoured Sammy," she handed him the bottle of lotion.

So all in all it took them about two hours to actually get halfway dressed before they headed over to the Winchesters' room to find Dean. Breakfast and a greenhouse were on the agenda for the day.

Dean was sitting on the couch, stuffing a bagel in his mouth when they returned. He smirked and hopped off the couch to pat Sam on the back. "I take it you two crazy cats got that room spotless?" He chortled and shoved his last bite of bagel, with honey nut cream cheese, in his mouth.

"Yep, it's like she was never there," Sam said, blushing.

"Well it was, now it's a mess again," Rhiannon added with a devilish grin on her face.

Dean burst out laughing, "That's my boy Sammy! So what's the plan for the day?"

"Well we're going to the greenhouse Dean, duh," Rhiannon stated, "I kinda wanted to get some food first… but I see you've already eaten."

"Nonsense!" Dean snatched up his jacket and car keys quick as lightning, "I'm always down for second breakfast!"

"I'm going to have to start calling you Pippin now, you realize that right?" Rhiannon snickered at him.

"What?" Dean looked absolutely puzzled.

"Never mind Dean," Sam sighed. Dean could tell you who played Zombie #3 in any given B-list horror flick, but god forbid he see something that was nominated for eleven Oscars. Good movies were not Dean's thing.

"So… does that mean we're going to go get breakfast?" Dean asked trying to mask the excitement in his voice.

"I would straight up kill someone for an omelet right now, so yes," Rhiannon stated, leaving no room for anyone to question her authority, "We are going for breakfast, and we are taking my car."

"No, no way no how," Dean already had his car keys in his hand.

"Oh come ON! You always take in the Impala…" Rhiannon paused, "You can drive on the way home," She grinned and batted her lashes at Dean, like that would work.

"Deal! Shotgun!" Dean called and ran out the door.

"No fair! You have to wait till everyone's outside!" Sam yelled back as he followed Dean out the door.

"Now now boys, when rules are up for questioning in Shotgun the easiest way to settle the matter is this: Whoever has the shotgun, gets shotgun. If no one has a shotgun, whoever has the biggest gun gets it." Rhiannon shut the door behind her.

(---)

"So, how do you guys normally handle a witch?" Rhiannon asked stuffing a massive bite of hot sauce-covered omelet in her mouth.

Dean shrugged as he ate an entire strip of bacon at once, "It depends on what they are doing, but it seems like more and more often these days…" He averted his eyes and took a few drinks of his coffee

"We usually gotta gank 'em," Sam said rather unceremoniously.

"I… but they're human… there's got to be some other way," Rhiannon sputtered. She'd never killed a human before, as far as she knew anyway.

"I'll call Bobby, see if he knows anything," Dean said as he shoveled the last bit of his eggs onto a piece of toast and devoured it. He snagged up his cell phone and mug of coffee and went outside.

"You really want to kill her Sammy?" Rhiannon asked, staring down at her thighs. She rested her hand on his leg.

"I don't want to Rhiann, but we have to stop her," Sam put down his fork and knife; he was barely halfway through his breakfast platter. There was pain written on his face plain as day.

"Oh Sammy," she scooted as close to him as she could get, "I know, we'll figure something out."

"I hope so," Sam said quietly; his voice sounded hoarse.

She brushed his hair back and couldn't stop herself from kissing him, not giving a rat's ass about public displays or people who were eating. He was just too damn gorgeous, and when he got those sad puppy dog eyes, well, Rhiannon was convinced no one could resist those.

"Ahem," Dean cleared his throat and sat back down. Rhiannon banged her knees on the table; she jumped so fast when she realized he had returned. Sam didn't look so sullen, but it was still clear that he was upset.

"What'd Bobby say?" Sam asked, looking up from his hash browns that he wasn't even eating.

"Good news first or bad news first?" Dean slid his phone back in his pocket.

"Good news," Rhiannon chimed in.

"Well the good news is we can stop her without killing her. Bobby said we could bind her magick, cut her off from it essentially so she won't have any power left."

"So she wouldn't be able to use magick at all?" Sam asked.

"Nope, not unless we unbound her," Dean responded.

"So what's the bad news?" Sam sounded hesitant.

"The bad news is the only way to bind her magick is through a ritual, and we need another witch to do it." Dean looked pretty pissed when he said this.

"Oh, really?" Rhiannon sounded… hopeful.

"Yeah really, so unless you're friends with Glenda the Good Witch, I don't know what we're going to do," Dean retorted.

Rhiannon shoved her last sausage patty in her mouth and managed to get out "Don't worry, I do."

(---)

"But you said I could drive!" Dean whined from the backseat.

"On the way home!" Rhiannon's voice was tense as she slipped her Trans Am into park in the parking lot of a craft store.

"Oh come ON!" Dean was acting like a five year old.

"ON THE WAY HOME!" She slammed her door shut.

"Oh for the love of God, would you two KNOCK IT OFF?" Sam yelled, sounding like their father… which sort of weirded Rhiannon and Dean out. "Now what are we doing here?" Sam asked in a much calmer voice.

"We're getting some supplies," Rhiannon pulled a pad of paper and a pink pen out of her purse and set it on the trunk of her car. She began to compile a list.

"Supplies for what?" Dean asked.

"For a binding ritual, Sherlock," She stated without looking up from her list.

"Uh huh, and how do you know what we need?" Dean didn't sound like he had a whole lot of faith in the plan as he bit into a candy bar.

"Uh hello, Google?" She stated, waving her spiffy new cell phone at him, as though everyone knew you could find spell working materials on Google.

"Ok, so what do we need?" Sam asked before they could start bickering again.

"Ah ribbon: red, black, and white. And I need to make a poppet so I'll need cotton to stuff it with, white fabric, needles, thread, and maybe some beads for eyes. Oh, the thread needs to be white and red. And…" Rhiannon sighed.

"And what?" Sam couldn't help but loop an arm around her waist as he leaned over to look at her list.

"And… we're going to need something of hers. Preferably something like her hair would work best but if we could just get like a piece of jewelry or even a freaking button off her clothing would work…anything really." Rhiannon sighed, that was the hard part.

"Well…shit," Dean mumbled.

"We'll worry about that part later, let's just get the stuff we can buy now," Sam was always so logical when they needed it. He kissed Rhiannon's check and the three of them headed into the store.

(---)

An hour, three spools of yarn, two severe needle-related injuries, and one ribbon-covered Dean later, they finally left the craft store with their haul in tow.

"So I can drive now?" Dean was acting like an excited puppy.

"No, now we have to go to the greenhouse so Sam can get something of hers," Rhiannon stated, lighting a cigarette and sliding into the driver's seat.

"What why me?" Sam asked, a little dumbfounded.

"Because you're the most charming one out of the three of us, silly," Rhiannon puffed on her cigarette.

"And how am I supposed to get something of hers?"

"I don't know, nibble her earring off or something,"

"WHAT?" Sam exclaimed.  
Rhiannon shrugged, "It'd work on me."

Dean just laughed from the back seat.


	11. Chapter 11

"That was bullshit," Dean groaned as he climbed out of the backseat of a gorgeous '69 Trans Am, "You said I could drive on the way back!"

"I said you could drive on the way home," Rhiannon emphasized the word home, "And I don't know about you but I don't have a home; I live in hotels and motels and inns." Rhiannon flicked her cigarette butt across the parking lot.

"You… you…" Dean went to slam the car door but when he turned and looked at the classic muscle car he changed his mind and shut it gently, it wasn't her fault that Rhiannon was being a, a, "You tricky bitch."

"Jerk," Rhiannon chuckled as she locked her car door.

"Jeesh, when's the wedding?" Sam asked, his voice tinted with sarcasm.

Rhiannon on the other hand looked absolutely appalled, "Never, ever. Good god, you will never catch me AT a wedding, let alone IN a wedding," she shuddered.

"That opposed to the institution?" Sam questioned.

"I'm opposed to informing the government about who I love and legally binding myself to… anyone really." She tossed her craft supplies on the table after they entered the Winchesters' room.

"I'm with you on this one," Dean said as he opened the cooler in their room, pulling out three beers. Sam didn't want one though, so he put one back.

"I have to get ready," Sam stated, not sounding too happy about getting stuck with witch detail.

"Aw, come one Sammy, you know I hate witches, they're so… gross," Dean said, grinning his patented self-satisfied grin.

"And what you think I like them?" Sam sounded peeved to say the least.

"You're the one with the thing for monsters… and demons," Dean pointed out.

"Whatever Dean," Sam grumbled and went to his closet to pick out a suit.

"Stop it you two. Look Sam, just get something from her and get back here, it'll take you like ten minutes max," Rhiannon reasoned.

"I know," Sam muttered and went into the bathroom to change.

"You should make up a couple hex bags, Dean, ya know, just to be safe," Rhiannon suggested.

"Yeah, yeah," Dean set his beer down and went out to his Impala to get some ingredients.

"OH!" Rhiannon exclaimed and darted out to her car.

"What?" Dean asked as he closed his trunk.

"I forgot something," Rhiannon replied as she opened hers. She pulled out a test sample kit for Sam. If he was supposed to be with the Department of Agriculture, he'd need a reason to be there. She figured getting some samples of the plants in the greenhouse was as good of an excuse as any. According to the website it had some very rare (and very occult) plants.

She knocked on the bathroom door when she got back in the room with a small black bag for Sam.

"What?" His tone was harsh; he had thought it was Dean.

"I have something for you," Rhiannon chirped back.

"Oh," Sam cracked the door open for her and she quickly stepped in and shut the door behind her.

"Here," She handed him the bag.

"What is it?" He asked even though he was already opening it to look.

"It's a lab sample kit. So you can take some samples of the plants she has there. I figured you might want some excuse for being there," Rhiannon responded.

"Oh yeah, that's a good idea. Thanks Hun," He looped his arm around her waist and kissed her forehead.

"You're welcome. So… do you need help with that?" She asked as he went back to getting dressed.

"Ah, I think I can dress myself," Sam blushed a little.

"I don't think you can…" She gave him a coy smile and put her arms around his waist. She very slowly started tucking his shirt in for him.

"Oh, come on, I don't have time…" Sam sounded like he was whimpering.

"Sure you don't," She kissed his neck as she buckled his belt for him.

Sam stopped protesting. He put his hand on the small of her back and lifted her chin with the other.

_Good Lord, I wish I could just kiss him all damn day¸_ Rhiannon thought to herself. One hand was on Sam's chest; the other was groping around on the counter trying to find his tie. She finally found it and laid it around his neck without ever pulling away from him or opening her eyes.

Sam smiled against her lips and lifted her up on the counter.

(-)

"Could you guys have been in there any freakin' longer?" Dean asked when they both finally exited the bathroom. Sam looked sharp in his "Department of Agriculture" get up and Rhiannon; well she looked a little messy. Almost like she'd just been thrown up against a wall.

"Yes, Dean, we could have," She smarted back at him as she tied her hair back in a ponytail.

Sam's face turned a shade darker than a tomato, "Yeah so, I should get going," He mumbled. He stooped down and kissed Rhiannon before snagging the keys to the Impala and the hex bags Dean made and skittered out the door.

"You two are so cute it makes me gag," Dean grumbled as he swallowed the last of his beer.

"He's the cute half," Rhiannon smirked and sipped her beer. She pulled out the fabric she had bought and started cutting it into a little gingerbread man type pattern.

"He's the gigantor half," Dean muttered as he grabbed another beer, offering one to Rhiannon.

"You have no-" She snickered and cut herself short as she started to stitch the gingerbread man together. She cracked open the new beer and tipped half of it back at once.

"I'm going to pretend I don't know what you're thinking about right now and move along. You seem to have a drinking problem…" Dean almost looked… concerned? What?

"I don't have a drinking problem," She was tempted to pull some Mel Brooks humor, but decided against getting beer all over the carpet. "I just prefer altered states of mind," She grinned.

"How altered?" Dean asked inquisitively.

"Well," she set her needle down after she had sewn her poppet together, it still needed to be stuffed and detailed, but she was getting there. She pulled a baggie out of her pocket and a pack of rolling papers along with a lighter. "Like this altered?"

Dean just laughed as she rolled up a joint and they both went outside.

(-)

Dean was inside grabbing two more beers while Rhiannon finished her cigarette. She sighed and tried not to let her mind wander too far into the future. Her mind always wandered through time until it finally settled on a conclusion she didn't like. She blinked tears back; she didn't want to think about what would happen when this job was over.

Dean's Impala pulled back into the parking lot. Sam got out of the car looking very proud of himself. He scooped Rhiannon up in his arms and kissed her; all the thoughts that were racing through her mind stopped.

"Did you get it?" She smiled, her legs around Sam's waist and her arms around his neck.

"Yep, jacket pocket," Sam was all smiles.

She reached in his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief, "Sammy, isn't this yours?'

"Yeah, open it," He had a devious look in his eyes.

There was a large spot of blood in the middle of the handkerchief.

"Sammy! That's better than I could have hoped for! How'd you do it?" Rhiannon kissed his cheek repeatedly. Dean had come back with two beers. He handed them both to Rhiannon and went inside to fetch another one.

"Thanks Beer Wench! Yeah, it was actually easier than I thought," Sam said as he set Rhiannon back on her feet; she handed him one of the beers in her hand.

"Well? How'd you get her blood?" Rhiannon's eyes were shining with delight as she stashed the handkerchief in her bra for safekeeping.

"I told her I was taking a sample, I mean she had Devil's Shoestring, Meadowsweet, Yarrow, Holly, I mean every kind of plant used in magick you could imagine! She even had that African Dream Root!" Sam regaled his story with excitement.

"Sammy, every plant can be used in magick," Rhiannon explained.

"Really? Anyway! So I just told her I needed a few samples, had her hold some plants for me and 'accidentally' nicked her when I was cutting one," Sam smiled when Dean came back outside. They clinked their beers together and the three of them drank. Rhiannon lit another cigarette and Dean took a drag or two off of it to Sam's surprise.

"Dean, since when did you start smoking again?" Sam looked confused.

"I don't, I just ah…" Dean started giggling. Giggling?

"Are you two high?" Sam asked, though he didn't really sound upset.

"Yup," Dean and Rhiannon replied in unison.

"Ooookay. Anyway, I just kind of… acted all clumsy and awkward and covered the cut with that handkerchief and…" Sam just smiled and shrugged and drank more of his beer.

"And she let you leave with it? What an idiot," Rhiannon acted like she was ashamed of the witch, Maeve.

"Yeah maybe…" Dean had his thinking face on.

"Maybe? That was pretty stupid of her," Sam commented.

"Or she thinks she's got one bad mofo watching her back," Dean responded despondently.

"Damn it Dean, can't we just celebrate this ONE victory?" Rhiannon grumbled, flicking her cigarette across the parking lot, and stormed back into the room to finish her poppet.

"What's her deal?" Dean asked Sam.

Sam just shrugged, "She seemed fine to me…"

"Must be 'womanly problems'" Dean shrugged. The boys finished their beers outside before returning to the room. When they did Rhiannon had stuffed the empty doll with the bloody handkerchief and was filling it with cotton and a blend of herbs.

"You alright?" Sam asked taking the seat next to her.

"Yeah I just… Have a lot on my mind and… I just don't want to think about what the real problem here could be," She mumbled as she started stitching up the opening in her poppet.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, grabbing another beer.

"I mean, the idea of a shifter and a witch deciding to team up and drain faeries' of their blood? Really? They have to be working for someone…" Rhiannon grumbled; she had the needle in her mouth as she clipped the thread.

"Yeah, I was starting to wonder about that too…" Sam had a far away look on his face.

"We'll just have to figure it out after we bind her powers," Dean stated, once again being the reasonable one. How did that keep happening?

"So who are we going to get to bind her for us anyway? Do you really know Glenda?" Sam asked only half-joking.

Rhiannon burst into laughter, "Oh boys boys boys. You know not of the benefits of being one with nature," She grinned, stitching another x on the doll's face for eyes. "Not all magick is evil, you know."


	12. Chapter 12

Rhiannon had moved the Winchesters' bedside table to the middle of the room and thrown a black cloth over it, to banish negativity. She sprinkled holy water in a circle around the homemade altar and wouldn't let the boys within the boundaries. She picked up the bell that was sitting on the altar and rang it three times, clearing the area of negativity. She was gravely afraid of interfering magick and so she took every precaution to block any outside influence. She had drawn runes all over the room; Beorc and Tyr on the door for purification, protection, and security and defense. She had traced Algiz and Isa on the windows for protection, luck, more defense, and to block negative energy. She had, in pencil, drawn Thorn and Haegl on the walls for banishing and more defense.

"Talk about having your defense up," Sam commented after she had told them why she was doodling everywhere.

Rhiannon completely ignored him as she walked her circle three times with a little handmade broom, brushing negativity out of the circle. She plopped down into the lotus position in front of her altar and began muttering something neither of the boys could really make out. She stayed that way for a few minutes until finally they could understand her.

"May the speaking stars surround me, may the speaking stars surround me," She kept repeating over and over. And eventually something happened that made Dean wonder what the hell he had smoked earlier.

She was shimmering. Or was it the air around her? Sam was quite certain she was literally surrounded by stars. Small little shinning specks were appearing around her. Occasionally they would crackle and it would appear as though a web of electricity surrounded her.

"What the hell…" Dean mumbled but kept his distance outside the circle.

"Don't worry, it won't shock you unless you harbour negative intents for me," Rhiannon sighed; her voice sounded unlike Dean had ever heard before. Sam thought she sounded completely at peace, like she did when they first woke up in the morning.

"Just, stay outside the circle boys," She said, rising to her feet. Sam and Dean sat down on the couch.

She picked up the white poppet, stuffed with a blend of herbs, some gem Sam had never seen before, and the taglock; which is what Rhiannon had called the bloody handkerchief. She picked up the white ribbon and started wrapping it around the poppet.

"Air links you to Maeve," she whispered as she tied the white ribbon.

Rhiannon picked up the red ribbon and began wrapping it tightly around the doll saying, "Fire links you to Maeve." She tied the ribbon off again.

She lowered the poppet to the ground, "Earth links you to Maeve," She said tapping its head on the ground.

"Water links you to Maeve," She dipped the doll in the chalice of holy water on her altar. "The bond is forged. The doll and Maeve are one, the link cannot be broken until I so choose, or, in Spirit's eyes, the work is complete. The Breathe of Life around you. The Breathe of Life within you. As is my will so mote it be!" She slammed the doll down onto the altar and a ripple of energy coursed through the room. The stars surrounding her began to crackle again; Dean could see the darkness trying to pierce her web. Sam was gripping his skull; he looked as though he was in pain.

"Sam?" Dean gripped his shoulders.

"With this doll, I bind the darkness in thine heart. May you find your magick empty when you seek to reach out for me," She whispered and picked up a black ribbon that was more than three times the length of the other ribbons. She began to wrap the doll, binding its arms to its body, tying its legs together, nearly encasing the entire thing in blackness. Sam fell to his knees.

"What the hell are you doing?" Dean screamed.

"May the powers that be seek to bind you from me. May the Spirit keep your malicious magick. May the fire burn and the winds shake you if you seek to harm another. As above, so below. As is my will, so mote it be!" She tied the black ribbon off when the doll was completely bound. She picked up one of her silver star-shaped earrings from the altar and shoved it through the third eye of the doll.

Sam screamed; he felt like something was closing in around his brain.

Rhiannon collapsed in a heap on the floor.

"What the FUCK!" Dean screamed looking at his incapacitated companions.

(-)

Rhiannon's eyelids felt stuck together, but she slowly managed to pry them open. She was on a bed, next to Sam, who was apparently not awake yet? She shot up immediately.

"SAM! SAM! Sammy… wake up please," She shook him gently and when that didn't work she leaned in and kissed his cheek.

"Whoa bitch!" Was that Dean?

She turned around to look and got hit across the face with something scalding hot.

"What did you do to him?" Dean asked. He had a gold chain wrapped around his open hand.

"Did you just slap me?" Rhiannon was utterly flabbergasted. Who had done this to Sam?

"Yer damn right I did, and I'll do it again if you don't start talking. What the HELL did you do to Sam?" Dean asked, grabbing her arm.

"Good god Dean, that stings!" She tried to yank her arm out of his grasp and almost did. "Damnit! I didn't do this Dean! I-I… I l-l-like Sammy! I would never hurt him! For Chrissake LET GO OF ME!" She screamed.

Sam started to stir at the sound of screaming. "What… the hell?" He looked from Rhiannon to Dean, back to her then to Dean's hand on her burning arm. Both Dean and Rhiannon were stock still, like Sam had paused some movie they were starring in.

"Dean… Rhiann… what…" Sam was groggy, confused, and his head was pounding.

"She did some WITCH SHIT to you!" Dean hollered.

"I DID NO-….Oh… shit…" Rhiannon whispered the last half of her exclamation and slowly tugged away from Dean, he actually let her go this time. She had a horrified look on her face.

"Oh God, Sammy… I-I'm so sorry, I didn't even think… I didn't realize…" She whimpered and put her arms around Sam. "I am SO sorry baby."

"Are you crying?" Dean looked at her like she was embarrassing him.

"Rhiann, what's going on?" Sam was just plain confused.

"Sammy, I think… I used your handkerchief so…" She trailed off.

"So what did you DO TO HIM!" Dean asked raising his gold-wrapped hand again.

"IT WAS AN ACCIDENT! I DIDN'T MEAN TO! I-I-I think I bound him," She sounded absolutely ashamed.

"Wait… what?" Dean was confused.

"I'm sorry, I didn't think about it. The handkerchief was Sam's. I thought since I was binding the poppet to Maeve… I didn't even stop to think that it could affect him… I am so sorry Sammy," She tightened her arms around Sam.

"So what did you do?" Dean asked, he almost sounded as if he wasn't angry anymore, almost.

"She bound my powers Dean…" Sam whispered, he was running his fingers through Rhiannon's hair. She was relieved that he wasn't upset.

"Wait? You mean that freaky demon shit? It's just gone now?" Dean sounded excited this time.

"Not gone," Rhiannon was stuttering and whimpering through her tears, "Just… dormant, locked. Until I unlock them."

"DON'T!" Both brothers screamed simultaneously. Rhiannon jerked away from Sam when he screamed and collided with Dean's gold-covered hand.

She screamed and tumbled backwards off the bed, landing flat on her back, "Jesus boys," she muttered from the floor. When she looked up she realized the entire room was sparkling. When she had fainted her web of stars had exploded all over the room. "Sweet," she whispered, completely enthralled by the shiny room.

"So you're saying you accidentally bound my powers? What about Maeve's?" Sam asked.

"Well… I'm assuming," Rhiannon spaced out as a section of stars near Dean crackled and exploded in a white light, the stars nearby began to shine brighter as they absorbed the white light.

"Yes?" Dean prodded her with his toe.

"I'm assuming since it was strong enough to bind Sam, it had to bind Maeve, she was the target."

"So, she's powerless?" Sam asked.

"Not entirely, but if she tries to bring harm to someone with her magick, oh she's in for a shock, or in this case a… uh… firestorm," Rhiannon grinned and gave a small, fake, chuckle.

"So what happens if I try to use my powers?" Sam asked.

"Ah well," Rhiannon sat up, finally, "I'm not sure. I've never had anyone get caught in the crossfire like this before. God Sam, I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, you did him a favour," Dean chimed in. "How-freakin-ever, YOU'RE A GODDAMN WITCH!"

"Hey Hey HEY! Don't you YELL AT ME DAMNIT! I have NEVER hurt a hair on ANYONE'S head with magick… Okay that's not true, but I haven't ever hurt a human anyway. Demons and malicious spirits and shapeshifters and werewolves and vampires and witches don't count. And neither do Rakshasas. Or buri buri." Rhiannon stuck out her lower lip and glowered at Dean.

"You're still a witch!" Dean exclaimed.

"I am NOT! I tap into the energies of the earth and… and… move them around. All I did was encase her magick in elemental energy so tight it can't escape without causing the energy around to flare up, and she will NOT like that, I promise."

"Sounds like a witch TO ME!" Dean hollered pulling out his gun.

"Oh JESUS CHRIST DEAN!" Sam yelled and bolted off the bed to stand between Dean and Rhiannon, which was a very tight space for someone so large. "She's HELPING US!"

"Yeah just like Ruby helped us?"

Sam gave Dean his patented bitchface and offered his hand to Rhiannon. He helped her up off the floor and muttered to her, "Come on, let's go. Let him cool off." Rhiannon took his hand and silently followed him to the door.

"This is different Dean; She's not intrinsically evil, she's human, just like us. She's just different, just like me." And with that Sam slammed the door behind them.

"She's just like us," Dean said in his mocking Sam voice after the door shut. "Fuckin monster-lover." And he decided it was about time for another beer.

(-)

"I'm sorry Rhiann," Sam whispered as Rhiannon locked the door behind them. She immediately started tracing runes all over the room.

"It's okay Sam, it's not your fault. You guys are used to hunting witches…" Rhiannon muttered. Truth be told, she wasn't angry with Dean; she was hurt. That he would turn on her so fast just for being different made her feel like he never really cared much for her.

"Dean just hates everyone that's different! He can't accept that someone can be different but still be human! He's … He's turning into Gordon," Sam muttered as he opened the mini fridge. "Can I have one or six of these mini bottles?" He had his puppy dog eyes on when he asked her.

"No," Rhiannon stated plainly as she went in the bathroom.

"Are you serious?" Sam was getting more and more irritated by the minute.

"Yep," She said as she sauntered back in the room with her ice bucket. It was full of ice, and a bottle of Patron. "We are drinking this tonight."

"Oh… my…god… You are my superhero," Sam gasped. He had almost reflexively said 'I love you' when he saw the bottle of Patron, but he managed to stifle that at the last moment.

"Just call me Captain Fubar!" She grinned and posed with her bottle of tequila.

"Foo Bar?" Sam inquired.

"Fubar! Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition, FUBAR!" Rhiannon laughed and opened the bottle.

Sam picked up two glasses from on top of the mini fridge and filled them with ice from the bucket. Rhiannon poured quite a bit of tequila over the ice and grabbed a few limes that she had stuck in the mini fridge earlier. She snagged the saltshaker off the table, snickering as she wondered how demons drank their tequila.

"Here's to…" Sam raised his glass and tried to think of something to cheer to.

"Here's to Dean coming to his damn senses," Rhiannon finished for him. They clinked glasses and both of them downed their entire glass. Rhiannon happily refilled them.

"Really, what did he expect? He knew we were going to have to do a ritual…" Sam sounded glum.

"I think he just got freaked out because of what happened to you. He loves you Sam and it hits a nerve with him when shit happens to you," She stated ever so eloquently.

"Whatever. Ever since Ruby he doesn't even trust me," Sam's eyes were a little glassy when he said this.

"Well, I don't know what to tell you Sammy. Don't trust demons over your family," She scooted up to him and planted light kisses down his neck.

Sam pulled away, "Yeah he'd say the same about you too."

"Well eventually he'll remember that faeries aren't inherently evil. I mean have you two NEVER dealt with Pagans?" Rhiannon asked.

"Oh yeah we have," Sam shuddered and remembered getting his fingernail ripped off.

"Well these days they're not so bad. We're all about peace and synergy and working in harmony. Most of us abide by the rule of three," Rhiannon sipped her tequila.

"Well not the ones we've dealt with," Sam slammed back the rest of his tequila and sucked on the lime Rhiannon handed him.

"Well of course, you don't have to deal with the good ones. There's no reason to hunt them. Jesus Sammy," She commented as she refilled his glass. She downed hers because she felt oddly obligated to keep up, licking salt off her hand and refilling her own glass.

"I guess… I just… You confuse me," Sam concluded.

"You confuse me too Sam…" Her voice trailed off into her glass as she sipped on her tequila.

"How do I confuse you?" Sam was really confused at this point. This conversation about being confused was confusing him.

"I mean…emotionally," Rhiannon grumbled into her glass taking another drink. "Look can we NOT talk about this right now. Today has already been too up and down and up and down and I just want to bring it back up and keep it there…"

There was silence for a moment.

"Oh that is so what she said," Rhiannon snickered and after a moment Sam burst out laughing with her.

Sam opened his mouth to say something but just blushed and kept quiet.

"Stop it Sam," Rhiannon took another sip and set her glass down.

"I didn't say anything. Stop what?" Sam gave her his best innocent puppy dog look.

Rhiannon sighed. She couldn't ignore it anymore, "Holding back with me. It's pointless. I mean I'm convinced that you're Adonis incarnate," Sam turned an even deeper shade of red but she kept rambling. "And even if your not, so what? What do you care? Once we stop this you guys are just going to take off and I'll never see you again so what's it really matter what I think?" She snatched her glass up again and swilled the rest of it, popping a slice of lime in her mouth as she poured herself some more.

"What? Rhiann, I…" But Sam didn't have words for her. "Rhiannon, please don't talk like that, not tonight." He set his drink down and plucked hers from her thin little fingers, setting it down too. "I don't want to think about that anymore than you do Rhi," He whispered as he leaned in and kissed her.

Sam leaned her back until they were lying on the bed, arms wrapped around each other.

(-)

Author's Note:: So the magick I used in this was MOSTLY real. I based most of it on my own experience, so I have to credit Silver Ravenwolf. I get most of my spells and wiccan information from her books. OH! And the Speaking Stars are actually from a Cassandra Clare book (The Mortal Instruments series) but I really do meditate on them when I work a web of stars so, they just kinda got thrown in there. (And I feel like randomly mentioning this: After I finish this story I'm going to write another one and it will be rated M ^_^)


	13. Chapter 13

Sam slowly opened his eyes. He felt like he had slept for days and days; it was a nice feeling. Rhiannon was shoving various weapons, flasks, and other nonsense into a massive purple messenger bag.

"Mm, g'morning," Sam rolled onto his back and stretched.

"Mornin'" Rhiannon shoved a dagger into the sheath on her waist.

"Where are you going?" Sam yawned.

"To the greenhouse," Rhiannon snatched up her car keys and stormed out of the room.

Sam jumped out of bed and gathered up his clothes as fast as he could. He hopped into his jeans and was heading out the door whilst trying to put his shirt on. But all he managed to do was watch Rhiannon blazing out of the parking lot.

"Oh for…" He wanted to punch something… someone. So he headed back to his own room, slamming the door behind him.

"Dean!" He hollered when he realized Dean was still asleep.

Dean rolled onto his stomach and muttered something in his sleep. Sam yanked the blankets off his bed.

"DEAN! WAKE UP!"

Dean opened his eyes rather groggily and looked around confused for a moment before he realized Sam was trying to wake him up.

"Jesus Sam, what?" Dean asked sounding indignant as he sat up. He shuffled slowly over to the cooler in the corner and snagged a bottle of water out of it.

"Seriously, what the hell is your problem Dean?" Sam was giving him the bitchface.

"You're the one screaming and stealing blankets at…" Dean looked at the clock, "11:30 in the morning. What's your problem?" Dean retaliated.

"You're my problem! Rhiannon just ran off to deal with this shit on her own! Why'd you have to freak out Dean? She's not evil! She's a FAERIE for the love of God!" Sam was going into irate-puppy mode.

"She's a goddamn WITCH SAM!" Dean was getting really fed up with his brother's evil-loving ways.

"No she's not! For the love of GOD DEAN! Would you just give me a chance to PROVE this to you?" Sam was already getting his laptop out.

"Yeah like you tried to prove" But he didn't get to finish his sentence, Sam cut him off.

"If you bring up Ruby one more time Dean I swear I will beat your face in AGAIN!" Sam was red in the face. The brothers were as close to being in each other's faces as they could be with their height difference.

"Fine Sam, prove your little girlfriend isn't a FREAKIN WITCH!" Dean relented and threw himself onto the couch.

Sam logged onto his laptop and got out his cell phone to call every hunter and psychic he knew.

(-)

Rhiannon whipped her Trans Am into the parking lot of Coventry Greenhouse. Now that Maeve's magick had faded she could see the old worn out runes all over the place, but they didn't matter now; they were completely ineffective. There was no stench of sulfur, no EMF, and certainly no shifter. There was a dark-haired woman looking out the window, Maeve.

Rhiannon slung her messenger bag over her shoulder and strode up to the door of the greenhouse. She went to open it but the door was locked. She heard a voice ring out from inside.

"Sorry dear, spraying for pesticides, please come back tomorrow," Maeve's voice was cheery, but falsely so.

"Oh, well shoot. Is there anyway you can bring something out here to me then? I'd really appreciate it," Rhiannon chirped back just as politely.

"Oh, I'm so sorry darling," She sounded a little farther away, "But really, for your health's sake, I can't. Just come back tomorrow and I'll give you a bargain, okay?" Rhiannon almost thought Maeve's voice quavered.

"No, it really must be today, I am sorry to disturb you, really, but it's an absolute necessity," Rhiannon slowly pulled her Ithaca Auto sawed-off shotgun out of her bag.

"I really wish I could help you dear, try the greenhouse in Mount Pleasant," Maeve was indeed getting farther away from the door. She was powerless and she knew it.

"No, I really don't think they can help me. You have such rare plants…" Rhiannon trailed off. She was getting fed up with this.

"I'm sorry, but I'm simply not capable of helping you today," The polite tone in Maeve's voice was fading.

"Open the door bitch or I'm coming in!" Rhiannon hollered, aiming her shotgun at the lock on the door.

Silence.

She popped a buckshot through the lock of the door and, mostly for dramatic effect, kicked it open. "You can't hide witch," Rhiannon lighted her fingers along the leaves of the plants.

There was a cellar in the backroom; Maeve had run back there to hide. These plants were damn informative. Rhiannon made it into the backroom just in time to see Maeve's hand, which had nicks and burns all over it, shut the door to the cellar. There was a locking rune on the door, but it was no good now. Rhiannon quickly opened the door back up, which caused Maeve to scream in frustration, and darted down the cellar stairs. Maeve was making a break for a door that led into a tunnel system where the shifter had been living; the plants had told her so.

If Maeve made it into the tunnels, the chances of Rhiannon catching up to her were slim to none. She yanked the dagger out of its sheath and flung it into the back of the witch's calf, sending her sprawling.

"I told you that you couldn't hide," Rhiannon muttered as she smashed the butt of her shotgun into Maeve's skull, rendering her unconscious.

(-)

Sam sighed and hung up his phone.

"Well?" Dean asked, his voice was caught somewhere between inquisitive and 'I-told-you-so.'

"Well the very few hunters we know that have actually dealt with faeries…aren't helpful. They all agree that faeries are mischievous and winsome little bastards. No one could really say one way or the other if they are good or evil. Most have only encountered one or two…"

"So maybe she's not evil, but she is trouble. And what's the deal with the magick?" Dean wasn't sure he liked Rhiannon any more than he did the night before.

"Well I scoped that out on the internet," Sam turned his computer so Dean could see the site he was on, but Dean wasn't really looking. "It says faeries work in harmony with nature. Says they don't use magick to hurt humans; but it doesn't mention them working magick against anything else."

"And that means?" Dean cocked an eyebrow, awaiting Sam's explanation.

"Essentially… it seems like they are neutral parties. They aren't good or evil, they defend what they have, whatever that may be."

"So…" Dean just wanted a goddamn straightforward, black and white, good or evil answer.

"So Dean, if she's evil it's because of the person she is, not the way she was born. Just like EVERYONE else."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better? She tortured that shapeshifter. God knows what she's doing to that witch," Dean was exasperated. Why couldn't things just be clear-cut?

"You're one to talk about torture Dean. And what? Now you're all worried about a witch? What the hell is your REAL problem Dean? You aren't making a whole lot of sense here," Sam had an inkling, like an itch he couldn't scratch, in the back of his brain. He didn't want to know what Dean's problem really was.

"I just don't trust her Sammy!" Dean was considering pulling the older brother card.

"Well I do!" Sam put his boots on. He had decided to go to the greenhouse, with or without Dean.

"Yeah, and look where that's gotten us! Sam just because she's got a pretty face doesn't mean you can trust her!"

"Really Dean? You of all people are going to give ME that lecture?"  
"Hey! Just because I like a lot of women doesn't mean I trust any of them. And you… you have a bad track record with trusting the wrong women!"

"Fine Dean. I'm going after her; she might need help. Are you coming or not?" Sam's tone relaxed and his eyes looked sunken and desperate.

"Auuugh!" Dean exclaimed in exasperation and snatched his keys off the table. "Let's go!"

(-)

Rhiannon double and triple checked the restraints on the powerless, unconscious witch in front of her. She had cuffed Maeve's right hand to her left ankle and her left hand to her right ankle behind her back. No point in taking chances, right? She pulled a bottle of dark green viscous liquid from her bag and poured it in a circle around the still "sleeping" witch. She jumped when her phone rang. Maeve began to stir at the noise.

"What Sam?" Rhiannon asked when she picked up the phone.

"So I take it that means you're okay?" She couldn't tell if Sam was worried or pissed.

"Yes, I'm fine. She was here by herself. I've got in under control," Rhiannon picked five stones out of her bag and set them up on the border of the circle. If one were to trace the lines between them it would make a pentacle.

"Well we're on our way," Sam mumbled.

"We?" Rhiannon asked.

"Yeah I think I've managed to convince Dean to judge you on your own merits. So you better be on your best behaviour when we get there," Sam was teasing her.

"He better be on his best behaviour," Rhiannon grumbled.

"I'll do what I can," Sam promised her.

"Thanks hun, OH SHIT!" Rhiannon dropped her phone.

Sam heard a short scream and then a click and the phone call was over.

(-)

Author's Note:: Sorry for the short chapter (again) it's been a rough day and there's some important shit coming up. I didn't want to ruin it by writing while I was being all mopey. Next chapter might not be till Monday night. Sorry! My work schedule is lame this week!


	14. Chapter 14

Maeve had attempted to fling herself at Rhiannon. But she didn't get very far. When she hit the edge of the circle around her it was like hitting a wall and she fell short on her face. Maeve growled in frustration as she struggled to roll onto her back. Rhiannon just laughed at the cuffed up witch.

"You might as well give up; you're so not going anywhere," Rhiannon pulled a cigarette from her pocket and lit it. She closed her eyes and the air around her was speckled with stars.

"You fucking cunt! You bound me didn't you?" Maeve screeched as she finally flopped onto her back.

"Yeah, that'd be me. And I killed your buddy too. And if you don't tell me who you're working for, you'll be next."

"I'll tell you if you tell me whom you're working with," Maeve hissed at her.

"Bitch please, I do this shit by my damn self," Rhiannon chuckled through her lie.

"You're a filthy rotten liar," Maeve replied.

Rhiannon crouched down to look Maeve in the eyes, "And you're just plain old filthy and rotten. Now why don't you tell me whom you're working for? A stupid old hag like you wouldn't have thought this up all by herself.

"You don't scare me. All you hunters are just violent and impulsive vultures. You kill and kill and kill and never question," Maeve began to rant.

"I'm questioning NOW! Who the HELL hired you?" Rhiannon was getting fed up with this witch. She tugged her dagger, former resident of Maeve's leg, out of it sheath and started twirling it around her fingers.

"You think your little knife scares me?" Maeve laughed, "I have suffered pain you could never imagined."

"The knife doesn't scare you huh? Ok," Rhiannon sheathed her knife and sauntered over to her bag. She pulled a small bottle, only an ounce or two, out. It was filled with a dark, darker than blood, red liquid. "What about this? Does this scare you?"

Maeve's eyes widened, "You can't. You-You're a witch? You can't come in the circle then. You are full of shit."

Rhiannon grinned and stepped one foot inside the circle of binding potion and imprisonment stones she had made and grabbed Maeve's face.

"Oh, but I'm not honey. Now tell me who hired you? I mean really, a witch should KNOW better than to kill faeries," Rhiannon let go of her and stepped back outside the circle.

"I didn't kill a single FUCKING insect!" Maeve screamed

"No, you just made it real easy for someone else to and got paid for it. That's good enough in my book," Rhiannon uncorked the bottle in her hand.

"Why do you care so much? Since when have hunters meddled in the affairs of the Fair Folk?"

Rhiannon closed her eyes and sighed. The stars in the room were crackling with white energy. When she opened her eyes again her pupils had expanded, her entire eyes were green with gold flecks except for her slit pupils "Since I came along."

"No. You're not a faerie…" Maeve sounded shocked.

"No, not fully. But enough. Now if you don't fucking tell me who you're working," Rhiannon stopped short. She thought … no, she knew someone was upstairs. And they were going to be down here any minute. Her eyes quickly flicked back to normal.

"You better hope that's not for me bitch," Rhiannon whispered as she darted to stand behind the stairs that led down into the cellar. She crouched and waited in silence.

The cellar door opened slowly and the barrel of a very familiar gun was the first thing Rhiannon saw, followed quickly by a pair of familiar boots. Then jeans, and of course his leather jacket. Dean. Not two steps behind him was Sam. Rhiannon breathed a sigh of relief as she walked out from behind the stairs.

"You? You goddamn buffoon? She's working with you?" Maeve shrieked when she saw Sam.

"What?" Sam turned and saw Rhiannon behind him before answering Maeve, "Oh her, yeah, workin' with us."

"Damn Rhiann, nice restraint techniques," Dean commented when he realized how Maeve was cuffed. Sam and Rhiannon both gave him very weird looks.

"Ooookay, good to see you too Dean. Anyway, I was just about to figure out whom she was working for," Rhiannon rattled on.

"No you weren't bitch, I'll never tell you," Maeve spat.

"Really? Do you KNOW what's in this bottle?" Rhiannon asked waving the small glass bottle at Maeve.

"Oh you're little potion doesn't scare me. What will it do? Make me spit up my insides? Maybe my skin will start to fall off? Maybe I'll just start rotting? Do your worst. It's nothing compared to what he could do," Maeve retorted.

"Oh no, it's nothing like that. I'm a good little faerie. This is just a karmic kick back," Rhiannon began to explain but was cut off again.

"Shouldn't it be blue?" Maeve asked reflexively.

"Yes, it should be. But you see, I made this one… mm, a little stronger. So instead of the evil you've done being returned to you, all the people you've wronged… They'll find you, whether they are living or dead. And I could just force it down your throat and leave you here. I'm sure there are plenty of hunters out there that want a piece of you. Maybe some spirits. Who knows, maybe a werewolf or a shifter or two? Any vampires or demons you've wronged? Hm? That sure does sound like fun to me," Rhiannon was practically grinning from ear to ear.

Maeve's eyes were wide.

"You should make some spares of that potion," Dean chirped in.

Sam, quite frankly, was a little scared of his… was she his girlfriend? He didn't really know for sure. Either way, he was kind of scared at that moment.

"I-I-I can't, I can't. He'll kill me," Maeve stuttered.

"I'll kill you," Rhiannon whispered. She got back down on the ground very near to Maeve.

Maeve stayed silent.

"Or I'll leave you here and you can hope someone will save you, but I doubt they'll get here before karma does. I'm guessing you've done a lot of bad shit, so karma is just DYING to catch up with you," Rhiannon whispered as she grabbed Maeve's jaw.

"Faerie! He's a faerie!" Maeve gasped and Rhiannon let go of her.

"What!" All the three hunters exclaimed.

"I do not know his name, but I know… I know he is… He's insane! I don't know what he would have done to me if I did not do what he asked. He brought me leaves and had me make a tracking potion from them. He introduced me to the shifter and had me scry during the day so I could tell the shifter where these faeries would be at night," Maeve began to ramble.

"Cracks like a peanut, this one," Dean mumbled to Sam.

"More like a walnut," Sam responded and the brothers chuckled a little.

"Shut up!" Rhiannon scolded them and they both stopped laughing immediately.

Maeve looked up from the boys to Rhiannon and back. "Are we done?"

"Oh hell no, keep talking witch," Rhiannon insisted.

"He also had me making a… a … I guess it was like a masking potion, with those leaves too. It kept the shifter's energies cloaked from the faeries," Maeve continued.

"Can you sense energies too Rhiann?" Dean asked.

"No Dean, NOW SHUT UP!" She hollered back and he did, though she couldn't see it, he made a face at her when she turned back around. "And?"

"And he would come, every 3 victims or so, he would come and take the blood that we had stored. I don't know where he took it or what he did with it," Maeve was slowly relaxing.

"When is he coming back?" Rhiannon asked.

"I-I-I don't know. He would be back tonight, because we should have more blood for him, but you killed my drainer and I don't know. I just don't know. Please let me go, I am powerless against anyone. Please…" Maeve had indeed cracked like some kind of nut.

Rhiannon looked back to Sam and Dean. In all honesty, she had every intention of offing the witch; Sam and Dean didn't look so certain though.

"Where were you supposed to meet him?" Sam asked.

"He just… shows up here in all his leafy glory," Maeve muttered.

"When?" Rhiannon chimed in.

"Usually sometime around midnight or so. Please just let me go, I've learned my lesson," Maeve pleaded.

"Somehow… I don't believe you," Rhiannon grabbed Maeve's jaw and dumped the dark red potion down her throat and covered her mouth so she wouldn't spit it all back out.

When Rhiannon stood back up neither Sam or Dean knew how to feel about what transpired. On the one hand, Maeve was a witch; on the other… she really was powerless.

"So back here at midnight boys?" Rhiannon grabbed her back and started walking out, hesitantly followed by the Winchesters and the sound of Maeve's screaming.

(-)

Rhiannon chucked her bag on the table when they returned to their motel. How the hell was she supposed to gank a faerie? Anything she could get her hands on that would kill a faerie would hurt her too. Sounded like a mission for the Winchesters.

"Well boys, we're going to need some supplies," Rhiannon stated as she unloaded the contents of her bag.

"Ok. Obviously we need gold," Dean chimed in.

"Yup," Rhiannon agreed, "Squirt guns would probably be helpful too."

"What why squirt guns?" Sam asked.

"For lemon juice, silly," Rhiannon tugged a pen and paper out of her bag and made up a list for them to get, seeing as she couldn't touch most of the things on it. She set the list down on the table and got up to get herself a beer. The boys just looked at each other, exchanging those all knowing looks.

"Well one of you needs to go," She flopped down on the couch and cracked open her beer, "I can't handle most of that stuff. Sorry boys, but this mission is kind of going to be on your heads."

Dean looked from Sam to Rhiannon and back before picking up his car keys, "Well, I guess I'll just… go… Yeah. I'll be back in a few hours," He muttered awkwardly before turning and heading out the door.

Sam couldn't help but chuckle a little to himself before grabbing a beer for himself and sitting next to Rhiannon. "So…are you doing alright?"

"Why do you keep asking me that?" Rhiannon sighed.

"I don't know, it's just… lately you go from happy to crying to…killing people at the drop of a hat. I just wondered if something was bothering you…" He mumbled, even though he knew something was bothering her.

"I-I'm sorry, I just…My head is a tangled mess right now. We don't have to do this if you don't want to Sam," she whispered, her eyes fixed on the couch cushion.

Sam didn't really know what to say. He knew they were both thinking about the same things. He put his arms around her and pulled her into his lap, holding her tightly. She ran her hands up and down his arms and kissed the backs of his hands.

"I don't want you to go Sam… I don't want to go. I want to stay with you, but I know I'll probably never see you again after tomorrow morning and and," Her voice was quavering; she was starting to go on a tangent. "And I feel so STUPID for letting myself fall for you. I knew it was going to end up like this, I knew how dumb this was but I did it anyway."

Sam kissed her cheek, "I know, this was really dumb, I guess…" Sam paused to think, "All I can do is try to make it seem like it was all worth the pain," He said, trailing kisses down her neck.

Rhiannon turned around in his lap to face him and buried her face in his chest so he wouldn't see her fighting back tears. "You are worth it… I just…" She sighed and tore herself away from him. She slammed back the rest of her beer and grabbed another one. She paused for a minute and finally smiled before sitting back down near him. "Screw this mopey shit, something this good, if it's meant to be, we'll see each other again. Right?"

Sam wasn't so sure. It sounded like a weak reason to have hope, in his experience the things that make you the happiest are the things you only get once. But for today, it was ok to try and be happy. "I hope so hun," He put his hand on the back of her head and pulled her into him.

(-)

When Dean returned, from Wal-Mart, no less, Sam and Rhiannon were asleep on the couch. He wasn't sure if they were dressed or not under the blanket, "HEY! GUYS! GET UP!" Dean hollered.

Sam shot up, nope, no shirt for Sam. "What, what the hell?" He was confused and a little frantic.

Rhiannon however just grumble and snuggled up closer to Sam, displaying no interest in actually getting up.

"Come on guys, we have to get ready, it's getting late," Dean grumbled and tossed his haul onto the table.

"You guys got this, I'll stay here," Rhiannon yawned and rolled over, burying herself in the couch while Sam got up and put his shirt back on.

"Come on Rhi, up up," Sammy patted her leg and she started kicking.

"Sleeeeeeep," She groaned.

"Dude, get up or I'm squirting you," Dean sighed as he filled a squirt gun with lemon juice.

"Wow that was beyond vaguely dirty," Rhiannon cackled at him as she rolled off the couch; Dean was thankful that she was fully clothed. "I don't see why I have to go, I can't do much against a damn faerie."

"Because you know more about these things than we do. And besides, he'll be more inclined to trust you, right?" Sam said, unsure if he was asking her or telling her.

Rhiannon just shrugged, "I suppose, since I've got a somewhat Fair energy."

"And besides, I had a great idea while I was out," Dean had that self-satisfied grin on his face.

"Are you sure? If any part of this idea involves pie…" Rhiannon started.

"No, no pie. But there was fire involved," Dean's smile widened as he said this.

"Was?" Sam asked.

"Well I figured I'd uh, give you two some time, so…." Dean set a case down on the table where they could both see it. The gun case creaked as it opened.

"Gold rounds?" Rhiannon's eyes popped.

"Yeah, I mean we melt down silver all the time, why not gold?" Dean stated.

"Because gold is soft and mushy…" Rhiannon grumbled.

"Hey! It's worth a shot!" Dean said defensively.

"So how much did you rack up on all this?" Sam asked as he loaded his own set of anti-faerie guns.

Dean snorted, yes he actually snorted, as he test fired his lemon gun at the floor, "Couple hundred for the gold. Luckily we'll never see the bill."

"What? How?" Rhiannon asked.

"Credit cards. They'll give just about anyone a platinum American Express card," Dean grinned.

"Really? Credit card fraud huh? I just hustle people at bars…" Rhiannon trailed off.

"Sammy, you nabbed yourself a hustler," Dean nudged his brother as he loaded his gun with the gold rounds.

"Oh it's just poker really. Sometimes I bet on sports too…Or I''swallet," Rhiannon mumbled quickly, strapping a dagger to her thigh. Dean instinctively checked his pocket, finding his wallet.

"You boys ready or what?" Rhiannon asked. She had slid a long sleeve cropped leather jacket over her tank top. She tucked her tight black pants into her knee high boots before putting her gloves on. She had done her best to cover every inch of skin, shy of wearing a ski mask, which she was debating. She had a few knives carefully strapped to her and her desert eagle was holstered on her hip. Incognito was not on her agenda for the evening.

"To go kill a faerie?" Dean asked. "Yeah, I'm totally ready for that," His voice was dripping with sarcasm as he shot lemon juice into the air.


	15. Chapter 15

Sam was loading a revolver with six gold rounds when they returned to Coventry Greenhouse. He handed Rhiannon the gun and kissed her forehead. "Here, I know you couldn't do it, but…I figured you'd want to try these rounds too."

"Thanks Sam," she whispered and kissed him back.

"Aw you two are so friggin cute, sitting in the backseat. I feel like I'm driving middle schoolers to their first dance," Dean sighed as he looked at them through the rearview mirror.

Rhiannon opened her mouth to snap back with something but Sam planted a soft kiss on her and shut her up. For tonight, Dean could say whatever he wanted. None of it mattered as long as the three of them were together.

Dean killed the engine and got out of the Impala, eventually followed by his younger brother and half-faerie hunting buddy. "So what's the plan here?"

Sam looked to Rhiannon and they both shrugged.

"I don't know," Rhiannon said as she pulled a small pouch out of her pocket and took two yellow stones out, handing one to each brother.

"Is that… sulfur?" Sam asked, he was debating sniffing the stone.

"Yeah, it is. Faeries hate the smell of it, hopefully it'll keep him away from you," Rhiannon explained.

"Hopefully?" Dean cocked his eyebrow.

"Well I mean, you guys probably hate the way the sewer smells and you still go down there," Rhiannon flicked out the cigarette she had been smoking.

"Actually no, I quite enjoy the stench of sewer," Dean smarted back.

"Ew," Sam responded.

"Moving on boys!" Rhiannon started heading for the greenhouse.

She was kind of surprised to note that it seemed fine from the outside. The doors weren't busted in anymore than they had been when she had left. The windows were all in tact. Of course the shotgun shot through the door probably made it easy for anything to get in… but still.

Dean went in first, like Dean always does, with his gun aimed and ready and his eyes sharp. Nothing appeared to be off. It was dark and full of plants, like any closed greenhouse would be. So they quickly made their way towards the back. Dean looked down; the door to the cellar had been smashed in. Splinters of it were strewn about the stairs. So he led off down the stairs and signaled for Sam and Rhiannon to come down when he realized there was no one there.

"Oh… gross," Sam remarked when he looked around the basement.

Maeve wasn't there anymore, well not really. There were a few teeth on the ground and fingernails embedded in the walls and the dirt. Chunks of skull and hair were spattered across the room and there was blood everywhere.

"Oh, dude, gnarly," Dean commented as he scuffed his boot on the ground, attempting to free a bloody chunk of dark hair stuck to it.

"Oh… wow," Rhiannon covered her mouth, looking around the entire room. "I-I-I did this. This is my fault."

"Rhi…she was a witch, this was karma you said so yourself," Sam reassured her, though he wasn't too sure himself. Killing evil shit, that was one thing, but this… this was a massacre.

"Bitch had it coming," Dean grumbled. So maybe Rhiannon was a little twisted, but he had decided she was okay in his book. Besides, what hunter wasn't a little twisted? Really, to spend your entire life running around the country to risk your own life to save people that usually end up thinking you're a psychopath, for no money, no thanks, and more than likely an early death by supernatural causes, one had to be psychotic.

"Maybe I was a little harsh…" Rhiannon mumbled.

"Look, Rhiann, don't take this the wrong way, but shut up. We don't have time for guilt right now, ok? She was a witch. She was ganking faeries; you're not going to Hell for this… Maybe for seducing Sammy with Jack Daniels, but not for this, ok?" Dean snapped at her.

Rhiannon shut her mouth and nodded, "So, what, do we just wait here?"

"I guess," Dean shrugged.

"Actually… you said you can't read energies right? But you can still read plants. Maybe we should go back upstairs. Maybe the plants here will… feel him coming?" Sam asked. He thought he sounded completely stupid, but it was the only idea they had.

"Yeah, it's better than sitting around with out thumbs up our asses," Rhiannon sighed and started marching back upstairs, Winchesters in tow.

Rhiannon removed the fingers from the glove on her right hand and buried them in the pot of a small white lily that she thought might be the newest plant in the place. It felt like blood, it felt like traces of demons and werewolves and spirits. Many things had come for Maeve today. The lily felt like it wanted sunlight and Rhiannon chuckled a little.

"What?" Dean asked at her laughter.

"What? Oh nothing, nothing yet. It's just hungry," Rhiannon smiled.

"Dude, your girlfriend is a freak… You two are perfect for each other," Dean whispered not so quietly.

"You know you two are too much alike," Sam retorted. Dean cocked his eyebrows at him, giving him a completely astounded look. He opened his mouth to respond but cut off when Rhiannon started.

"Life is coming. Something, it's just spewing life and energy, is coming," Rhiannon gasped and pulled her fingers out of the flower pot, quickly working the fingers back onto her gloves. "It's a faerie, it's him."

Dean pulled out his squirt gun and Sam cocked his gold round-loaded gun. Rhiannon's eyes fluttered open, and the whites had turned a solid green flecked with gold. Dean noticed first and thought it was actually kind of hot; Sam found her a little bit scary. The air around the three of them began to shimmer with stars. Almost as quickly as the stars appeared they began to crackle as they absorbed a dark energy seeping in the greenhouse and exploded in brilliant white light.

"You're not who I expected…" A light male voice said rather jovially. It was coming from a man, or a faerie rather, not much bigger than Rhiannon. He had golden reddish hair, almost like a sunrise, and brilliant green eyes. There were vines and flowers tangled in his hair. His hands were muddy and his fingers looked like claws. His feet were covered in dirt.

"Sam… are you…seeing this?" Dean asked without taking his eyes off the faerie.

"I hope not…" Sam whispered.

"You're a FAERIE! Why are you killing your own kind?" Rhiannon flew off the handle.

"They…had lost sight of their purpose," The faerie smiled, the plants around him were growing and twining with each other, gradually inching closer to the Winchesters.

"So you KILL THEM? What the HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU! What do you mean lost sight?" Rhiannon was trying very hard, and failing horribly, not to scream at the top of her lungs.

"I mean they were much too concerned with locating some relic here than they were with defending their home," He responded in a cool voice.

"What would they possibly have to defend their home from?" Rhiannon asked. Thorny vines were beginning to wrap around her feet but she ripped her feet out of them, getting closer to the faerie.

"Them," He said nodding towards the Winchesters, who were still frozen in awe, "Humans. They were destroying our forest."

"Our?" Rhiannon asked, terrified she already knew the answer.

"Yes, our. I am the chieftain of their clan," He stated, sounding proud.

"And you decided to have someone start OFFING THEM!" Rhiannon screamed. "You're FUCKED UP IN THE HEAD! YOU KNOW THAT?"

"Well of course I am, didn't you ever wonder why?" The demented faerie smirked.

"Why what?" Rhiannon was red in the face and ready to stab this mofo, unfortunately, that wouldn't really do any good.

"Rhi…" Sam sighed in despair.

"Why the other chieftains came for your family? Why they didn't kill you?" He asked.

"How do you… How do you know all that?" She stuttered.

"Rhiann…Are you serious?" Dean asked in disbelief.

"Even your mud monkeys can see it and you can't," The faerie chuckled.

"Rhiann… that's… really kind of obviously, um… I think that's your father," Sam whispered.

The web of stars began to fade slowly; Rhiannon's concentration was slipping.

"No… you're… you're dead," She whispered.

"No, the ones who hunted me are dead. And if I had not killed them, you would be dead too. So you should put your little pistol down and thank me," Faedir said. "Your blood is tainted, the people around you, even your lover over there, all see it. You have a dark soul just like me. That is why they wanted me dead, us dead."

"You don't know anything about me," Rhiannon growled as the web of stars fell away completely.

Sam and Dean both tumbled to the ground. Rhiannon looked back at them; they had been caught up on thorny vines and were trying to tear them away but they just kept growing back.

Rhiannon stepped up to Faedir, her nose practically touching his; their identical green eyes were almost level. "You let them go. This has nothing to do with them. You let them the fuck go."

"Oh no, not yet. I don't think you understand daughter," Faedir reached up to touch her face.

Rhiannon swatted his hand away and thrust her fist into her gut, "Bad move daddy."

Sam and Dean finally managed to untangle themselves and drew their anti-faerie guns, but neither fired. Sam was afraid he'd hit Rhiannon, she was too close to their target. She drove her knee into Faedir's side but he simply laughed.

"Oh little one, do you really think that hurts?" He asked as he grabbed her by the shoulders, digging his long claws into her, and chucking her across the room. He made his way to his next target, Sam, and the earth started to shake.

"Oh shit," Dean muttered; he pointed his squirt gun at Faedir.

"Shit is right, you boys smell awful," Faedir wrinkled his nose but didn't stop coming closer.

Dean fired blast of lemon juice all over Faedir and his skin sizzled and bubbled up as it burned. Faedir winced but he ignored the pain, throwing Dean aside and grabbing Sam by the throat.

"Rhiann… you really should have warned us about faerie strength," Dean choked out as he struggled to his feet.

"It's not the strength you should worry about," Rhiannon started to say but cut off when, quicker than the eye could see, Faedir was above Dean. He drew his foot back and drove it into the jaw of the oldest Winchester.

"Shit," Sam exclaimed as he slammed up against a wall with faerie claws still around his throat, "You're fast."

"Faster than a vampire," The faerie grinned revealing pointed teeth. He drug the claws of his free hand across Sam's chest, blood started dripping from him.

"Dean!" Rhiannon slowly got to her feet; her whole body was wracked with pain. Dean was unconscious on the floor. She turned to Faedir, who was sinking his claws into Sam's chest.

"Rhi…" Sam choked out.

"YOU PUT HIM THE FUCK DOWN!" A million stars burst into the room, crackling with white hot intensity, but despite the miniature lightning bolts flying into him, her father would not let go of Sam.

"Oh, I think not. Daughter of mine, you should know better than to curse this poor little human with your love, or he'll end up just like your mother," Faedir's smile reminded Rhiannon of a wolf ready to eat.

Rhiannon ripped her necklace off, the one she always wore, even to bed. It was a thin, now broken, silver chain that had a very small glass vial hanging from it. There was an intricate silver-knotted design on the front that held an opal in the middle. The glass vial itself contained what Sam had always assumed was glitter. It was dark blue, sometimes black, sometimes purple, and sometimes green. But at that moment it was shining a bright white rainbow. Rhiannon threw the vial down and it shattered in front of Sam.

All that could be heard was glass shattering as a bright white explosion flared in the cellar of the old greenhouse. Sam fell in a heap to the ground as Faedir went flying into the opposite wall. The shreds in Sam's chest started patching themselves up as Rhiannon grabbed him by the arm and yanked him to his feet. Sam scooped up Dean and they bolted out of the cellar and the greenhouse.

"Dean!" Sam laid him out on the ground near the Impala gently shook him. Dean's eyes quivered and he blinked before opening. "Are you okay?"

"You mean aside from the migraine and being tossed like a rag doll by a FREAKIN FAERIE? Yeah Sammy, I'm just peachy," Dean slowly pushed himself to his feet.

"What happened in there? What did you do Rhiann?" Sam turned to her perplexed, he felt great at the moment, and the cuts in his chest were completely healed.

"That was my faerie dust," Rhiannon started to explain, but before any of them could register it, Faedir was outside, burnt and fried and still breathing.

"Oh shit," Dean groaned.

"What have you done daughter?" Faedir asked as he moved to her side, grabbing her by the throat and hurling her to the ground.

"I am not your daughter anymore," She spat a mouthful of blood and what she feared could have been a molar onto the ground.

"And that will make you much easier to end," Faedir cackled.

"What the hell Sam?" Dean asked, the boys were practically being ignored at the moment.

"She used her faerie dust, I think? I don't know," Sam was confused.

"Uh huh, awesome," Dean drew his squirt gun, much to Sam's dismay.

"No, Dean! They're too close, you'll get Rhiann," Sam went to snatch the gun from Dean but it was too late. Faedir at his back to them as Dean burned his skin with shots of lemon juice. Rhiannon got hit with the splatter but nothing happened. When Sam realized she was okay, he also noticed that her eyes had gone back to normal.

"Holy shit," Sam gasped and pulled out his gold-loaded gun.

"Sam…" Dean was going to tell him to be careful, but he just snapped his trap shut.

Sam unloaded three rounds into Faedir's back. The bullets made of the soft, malleable metal pierced straight through the faerie, but when they hit Rhiann they smashed and flattened against her.

"What the fuck?" Rhiann screamed as she was pelted with soft gold and dropped to the ground simultaneously. She'd had the wind knocked out of her and was bruised and beaten, but she'd been worse before.

Sam rushed to her side as Dean went over to Faedir's body, which was decomposing into the earth before his eyes. "Well that's a new one," Dean muttered as he kicked the pile of dirt that was the remainders of Rhiannon's father.

"Are you okay?" Sam asked, scooping her up in his arms.

"Oh yeah, I just took three gold rounds to the stomach, but I'm good," She coughed. "Dean?" She turned the best she could in Sam's arms.

"Yeah?" He asked, walking over to them.

She pulled a bag out of her bra and handed it to him, "Will you roll me up a j?"


	16. Chapter 16

The two Winchesters and the lone no-longer-fair Rhiannon were sitting in a red vinyl booth at a 24 hour diner that reminded them all of the fifties. They all looked a damn mess and Rhiannon was curled up in Sam's lap, still holding her gut. Three bruises had flowered on her stomach already, and they had quickly turned a sickly greenish black.

"So…you're not…ya know, anymore?" Dean asked as he shoveled scrambled eggs into his mouth and gulped down milk.

"No, since I was only half, without my dust I'm powerless," Rhiannon sipped her orange juice.

"So… that's what saved me?" Sam asked as Rhiannon popped a French fry in his mouth.

"Yeah it's like… magick condensed. It shielded and healed you. It was all my magick in one little bottle," Rhiannon answered.

"So, you're immune to gold and stuff now…and?" Dean asked.

"And I'm not going to be as strong or as fast as I was before," She started.

"Yeah you were pretty freaking beastly for a little girl," Dean snickered and shoved two slices of bacon in his mouth.

"And I probably can't work magick anymore, or if I can it won't be nearly as potent. Obviously I can,t" Rhiannon cut off as their waitress checked up on them.

"How is everything? You sure you ain't hungry honey?" The lady was probably in her mid-forties and very sweet.

"Yeah I'm sure… do you have booze here? I need whiskey," She mumbled.

"Sure do hun, can I see your ID?" The kind waitress asked.

"Oh my god, after the night I've had," She grumbled and started checking her pockets as best she could without getting out of Sam's lap. He slid his hand in her back pocket and pulled her wallet out for her.

"Thanks baby," She smiled and kissed him as she took her ID out and showed it to the waitress. "Jack and Coke please, and two shots as well."

"Oh no, I'm good," Sam said.

"Yeah I'm not up for whiskey right now," Dean chimed in.

"Who said those shots were for you?" Rhiannon retorted. "Jack and Coke and two shots."

Their waitress scurried off to get Rhiannon's drinks.

"Anyway, obviously I can't commune with nature anymore, I can't… I can't do anything. I'm not going to be able to hunt anymore…" Rhiannon thought she might start crying. She wished she had ordered double shots.

"Hey," Sam nuzzled her cheek, "Faerie or not, you're a great hunter."

"Yeah but I don't have the upper hand now, I've got no advantage anymore," She buried her face in Sam's neck until the waitress set her drinks on the table. She took a sip of the mixed drink before throwing back one of the shots.

"Ok so before you had magick and freaky faerie strength, now you've just got a BADASS car, a seriously dangerous arsenal, and a mind that's as sharp and as twisted as werewolf teeth. Now you're just taking the same risks as the rest of us," Dean said as he destroyed a biscuit in two bites.

"I guess; I don't know. I'm scared now," She sighed and threw back her second shot and swilled down a good portion of her drink.

Sam kissed her cheek, "Everyone gets scared, but in this line of work, you just can't let that stop you."

"You're right Sammy, I've never let fear stop me before, even when I should have," She replied, her eyes locked with his. Sam knew what she meant. Dean just sat there feeling awkward.

"Well anyway! We need to lighten the mood! We just took down one evil son of a bitch, I say we celebrate!" Dean grinned from ear to ear.

"Ah…" Sam opened his mouth and he had that smile, that I-need-to-say-something-very-awkward kind of smile.

Dean looked back and forth between his brother and Rhiannon, "Right! Well, how about I drop you crazy kids off at the motel, because I'm going to the bar! Actually Sam, maybe you shouldn't stay in our room tonight," Dean smiled a wolfish grin.

Sam just chuckled, "Yeah, once was enough for me."

Rhiannon's eyes popped, "What?"

Dean just burst out laughing.

"Ah well, one time…" Sam started, "Hm, let's just say I came home too early."

"Oh dude, grody," Rhiannon downed the rest of her drink and tossed thirty dollars down on the table. Sam scooped her up as Dean paid for their food.

Once they got to the car Rhiannon lit up a cigarette and sprawled out in the backseat. She instantly curled back up into a ball though as the stretching made her stomach throb and her muscles clench and cramp. She groaned and climbed back into Sam's lap, where he happily held her close. She fought the urge to whimper and start bawling. She refused to break down in front of Dean. Not now.

The ride back was silent except for the occasional smooch and Dean's AC/DC tape. When they got back to the motel Dean didn't even shut off the car. "You two take care of each other," Dean said as Sam picked up Rhiannon and got out of the Impala.

"Yeah you uh, you have fun Dean," Sam grinned and Rhiannon waved good-bye to Dean as he pulled away.

Rhiannon looped her arms around Sam's neck as he carried her off to her room. He set her down lightly on the bed before taking her keys from her pocket and locking the door.

"How are you feeling?" Sam asked as he sat down next to her, curling his arm around her waist.

"Well my stomach feels like, well like I got shot. I think I have some bruised…insides, I don't know. My head feels like it's going to explode. I feel completely powerless even though I know there's an arsenal in my car. And my heart…" She didn't want to finish her sentence anymore.

"Feels like it's breaking?" Sam asked as he kissed her temple.

"Yeah, something like that," Rhiannon choked back tears as she turned her face to meet Sam's lips with her own. "I… I have to go home. I need to sort myself out."

Sam's puppy dog eyes were shimmering, but he wasn't crying. "When?"

"Tomorrow. I can't… I don't know what I'm going to do. Maybe I should try to be normal; maybe I should try to keep hunting. I don't know, but I know I can't figure it out driving around this big fucked up country," Rhiannon whimpered.

"But for tonight…" Sam whispered.

"Tonight I'm all yours, all night, Sammy."

(-)

Sam wasn't sure why his phone was going off, maybe it was an alarm, maybe it was a phone call, he didn't check; he just chucked the damn thing across the room. The sun was peaking through the curtains but he didn't care. He rolled to face Rhiannon and pulled her close until she was right up against him. He closed his eyes and listened to her breath. But his movement had disturbed her sleep and she started to stir. Her arms tightened around Sam and she kissed his chest over and over.

"Are you getting up?" Sam whispered, not because he wanted her to, just because he wanted to know.

"No, never. We should just sleep here forever," Rhiannon mumbled against his skin sending shivers down his back. She refused to open her eyes even though she wanted to stare at her gorgeous kind-of-boyfriend.

"Mm, sounds like a plan to me," Sam smiled. His hands started wandering all over her until she flinched and whined. "Oh god I'm sorry baby," He realized he had touched her stomach.

Rhiannon rolled onto her back to get a good look at her stomach. It was black and green and purple and blue and, "Ew."

Sam leaned over and kissed around the edges of the bruising. She ran her fingers through his hair and pulled him up to kiss him just as there was a banging on the door.

"Sam, why don't you ever freakin answer your phone?" It was Dean.

"Because I'm busy!" Sam hollered before leaning down to kiss Rhiannon. He wasn't ready to go, not yet… not ever.

"I just got a call from Bobby, it was static-y, I think he said something about Crowley. Sam we have to go," Dean sounded remorseful when he said it, "Sam, I really am sorry."

Rhiannon's eyes were welling with tears as Sam hovered above her. He knew he had to go, had to get out of bed and get dressed and get in the Impala and never come back. But he just couldn't force his muscles to do it.

"Baton Rouge… If you're ever around, look me up. If I change my number, I'll let you know…Sam…" She wasn't sure how she would finish her sentence, but that didn't matter because Sam covered her mouth with his.

Sam left Dean standing outside for at least another hour. When he looked back on that day, he honestly didn't know how he had physically managed to get in the car. He didn't remember getting any of his belongings from the room. He didn't remember walking out Rhiannon's door. He remembered lying in bed with her while she cried. He remembered wanting to scream, but he knew he didn't. He had to be strong enough for the both of them. He remembered the way her lips felt for the rest of his life, but he didn't remember getting in the Impala and driving away. He remembered her hands on his chest; he remembered the way her eyes were flecked with gold. He remembered the way she smelled, like lilacs, but he couldn't remember the countryside they drove through after they left.

He remembered Rhiannon standing in the parking lot, smoking, with a flask in her hand and tears in her eyes. He remembered Baton Rouge. He swore to himself that someday, when they didn't have to worry about all this evil shit anymore, he would get her back.

She remembered fighting the urge to chase down the Impala. Her feet had been stirring under her, almost beyond her control she had started to run after him. But she had stopped herself. Chasing down an Impala in the name of love, she almost laughed at herself. She never thought she'd ever feel that strongly about anyone. She remembered exactly what his lips felt like on hers. She remembered the feeling as he, like something was ripping out of her chest. She stood, sobbing in the parking lot for longer than she knew. And she felt the pain she knew she would feel from the beginning, the pain of love being over the hills and far away.


End file.
